The Ties That Bind
by Artic Rose
Summary: A romantic story following the relationship between childhood friends Danny Walker and Leah McCawley, and the momentous events before and after the disaster at Pearl Harbor that would change their lives forever!
1. Missing You

Hey there FanFic readers. Well this is my first FanFic so a little bit of R/R would be welcome! But lease be nice. This story is a shameless romance between Danny and Leah. It takes place a bit before they all go to New York. Please review and give it a chance. So on with the story… here's chapter one!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except Leah, this is for pure entertainment and I'm not planning on doing anything with it. Please don't sue me!

**The Ties That Bind**

"LEAH MCCAWLEY!" shouted the old looking nurse from behind the check in station

"Ok Leah this is it" Leah McCawley thought to herself as she walked towards the crowd of young girls lining up to check in for their first day of nurses training. "No turning back, this is everything that you've ever wanted."

"LEAH MCCAWLEY!" shouted the nurse again

Leah took a big breath and walked confidently towards the front desk.

"Yes, yes that's me." She stuttered

"About time" said the nurse with a thick New York accent "You will be in room 219 with Betty Anderson and Evelyn Johnson, that's on the 2nd floor" said the nurse unenthusiastically, while handing her a brown paper package most likely filled with her uniform. "Orientation is at 12" added the old nurse "Welcome to the Navy Nursing Corps, Miss McCawley."

"Thank you" she replied. Leah scanned the room full of girls laughing and talking to each other, looking for a friendly face to talk to.

Becoming a nurse had been what Leah had wanted to be ever since she was 9 years old. Now that she was here in New York she couldn't believe that her dream was coming true. Leah had followed her two best friends into the army, Rafe McCawley, her brother and Danny Walker. They had been inseparable since they were 5 years old, growing up Jackson, Tennessee. Where they would spend their days running about her daddies crops; playing their various war games. That was how she spent her childhood, with Rafe and Danny, always. She has never been so far from home before and being so far away from her family made her feel lonelier then she already felt.

"Hi there" said a voice behind Leah that broke her out of her train of thought, she whipped around and say a face of young looking girl with wavy blonde hair.

"I'm sorry but I over heard you checking in… Hi, I'm Betty Anderson; you're new roommate, if you like can show you to the room?" she blurted out rather quickly

"Oh, hello," said Leah rather taken aback "Sure if you like, I can't find anything in this crowd."

"Yes I know but, I arrived yesterday from Boston so I already know my way around." she stated "Where did you come from?" Betty asked as they walked towards their room

"Tennessee, just a small farming town in Tennessee" she said with a smile on her face reminiscing back in memory of her home

"Tennessee! You've came along way? How long did that take you to get here?" asked Betty

"Just about a day I presume." Leah said

"I guess you'll want to get some rest then?" Betty stated "Here we are." she said inserting the key into the door and opening it.

The room was plain, but clean with one big closet, three small beds and bedside tables. A big vanity sat in front of the wide window, which let in a fair amount of light. It wasn't much but it was home for the next three months. A young woman with dark brown hair was already in their unpacking her things into a small dresser.

"Evelyn this is Leah McCawley, Leah McCawley meet Evelyn Johnson our new roommate." said Betty

"Very pleased to meet you" said Evelyn coming up to Leah and shaking her hand "You sure have a lot of things" stated Evelyn

"Well I'm not sure how long I'll be here for so I packed quite heavily" said Leah heaving her suitcase onto the closest bed to the wall.

"Are you ok, Leah?" asked Evelyn "You don't look to good."

" No I'm fine just tired from all the huslin' and buslin' of today." Leah said

"You should get some rest before orientation." she replied

"No, its ok, I think I'm just going to unpack" she said

"So…" said Betty jumping on to the bed in between Evelyn and Leah, "You girls know any flyboys?" she said hopefully looking back Leah and Evelyn

"No, I'm sorry Betty I can't help you there" said Evelyn giggling

"How about you Leah?" she asked bunching up a pillow in her hand

"Two, my best friend and my brother." she sighed

"I like the sound of that, hope they got some friends, what's their names" blurted out Betty

"Rafe and Danny" she replied "Their over at the base just on the other side of the city. I miss them a lot I haven't seen them in over 6 months."

"I've never really had a family so I don't know what it's like to be away from someone you love." answered Betty "You will probably be able to see them soon, at the medical exams, I think were scheduled to go in about a month."

"I only wish it could be sooner!" sighed Leah

"Would you look at the time girls we gotta head down to the main hall for orientation!" said Evelyn

"Wow, time flies when you're having fun I guess?" stated Leah

The three girls walked out of their room and down to the main hall for the first day's orientation.

_Later on that night…_

"That could have been the most boring thing that I have _ever_ had to sit through!" exclaimed Betty

"I _need_ to get some rest!" added Leah collapsing onto her bed, resting her eyes onto a particular dark spot on the roof...

"Sounds like a plan we have a big day tomorrow we all need to be well rested" replied Evelyn, pulling out her pajamas.

"Good God Ev, you really need to lightin' up some times, relax! We're in New York!" squealed Betty "I could use the beauty rest though…"

The girls jumped into their pajamas said good night and turned out lights, exhausted from a long day. Half an hour later everybody but Leah was asleep who was under her covers writing a letter to Rafe about the days happenings…

_My Dearest Brother Rafe,_

_Today was one of the most exhilarating and tiring days of my life! This place is everything that I had ever wanted it to be! _ _How is the training going? Hopefully you guys haven't done anything stupid to get yourselves kicked outta that place! I would never forgive you if you did. Are you and Danny well? Hope their not working you too hard and feeding you well. I have met some wonderful people here; my roommates Betty and Evelyn are really nice. I think you would really like Ev, you two are so similar! I just found out that were coming down to the base in about a month to give medical exams. I can't wait to see you and Danny; words cannot explain how much I miss both of you. I'm sorry this letter is short but it's late and I'm mighty tired. Make sure you say hi to Danny for me, I miss you both so much. I hope to see you very soon._

_Lots of Love,_

_Leah_

With that she sealed up the letter and placed it on the nightstand for her to mail tomorrow. She smiled to herself and turned out the lights and fell into a deep sleep dreaming of what else could possibly be in store for her.

And that's the 1st chapter. Sorry it's really bland! But I think it's going to get better! Please review it would be much appreciated!

AR


	2. The Boys

Thanks everyone for reviewing, much appreciated! I'm glad most of you like it so far. Well, this next chapter is for the point of view of both Danny and Rafe, about 5-7 days after the first chapter, Happy Reading/Reviewing!

"Where the hell are McCawley and Walker?" demanded the flying officer, who was in charge of making sure that the boys were in line.

" t-t-h-ere still t-training sir." sttammerd Red

At that moment two spitfires piloted by two certain farm boys came screaming through the air by the runways directly towards each other.

"Lets go Danny we're goin' to play us some chicken." said Rafe

"No way not this time, I'm not getting myself kicked outta this thing quite yet." replied Danny "these aint no crop dusters either." he added

"God damn it Danny, why are you always like this, even when we were young you always were the baby! How do you expect yourself be survive a dogfight if you can't even play some chicken!" he yelled over the roaring sound of the engine.

"Were not in this war yet and I'm not planning on getting myself killed until then!" he retorted back

"You can do whatever you want Danny but I'm coming straight for you can move or get us both killed. I'm going left." said Rafe

"I swear to God Rafe, why are you always busting my ass, and were going right, Righty-Tighty!"

"Righty-Tighty!" Rafe repeated

The two planes roared towards each other and at the last second when it looked like they were going to collide, both pilots pulled to the right. This sent the group of men on the ground into a chorus of hoots and hollers.

"Everybody shut up!" the flying officer screamed at the men surrounding him "You think this is funny, well this is the last time for those two boys, I _guarantee _that they _will _be out of the United States Air Force!" he spitted out

"What the hell are you looking at Fusco!" he spitted out at Anthony Fusco who was still smirking at Danny and Rafe's stunt.

"Nothing sir, sorry sir." he said looking at the ground

"That's right." Officer Matthews stated as he walked over to the two spitfires who had just landed on the tarmac.

"Great here he comes, Rafe, I knew you were the worst thing that has ever happened to me." Danny said climbing down out of his plane.

"He can't do anything to us Danny, lighten up, the final discipline comes from Doolittle and won't kick out his two best pilots, he won't, relax!"

As he finished his statement Matthew's walked over to them with a rather smug look on his face.

"McCawley, Walker, come with me," he motioned to the two boys to follow him.

"Right away sir!" replied Rafe with a hint of sarcasm in his voice

"Don't be giving me any attitude son; I'm sure you will both be getting chewed out for that little stunt," he said with an undertone of happiness

"I'm sure we will sir." was Rafe's reply

The two boys were escorted up to Doolittle's office and were told to sit down and shut up and wait until Doolittle was ready to see them. They were sitting on those uncomfortable vinyl chairs for a mere 5 minutes before Rafe burst out into laughter.

"What do you have to be laughin' at?" questioned Danny

"Nothin' it's just I love seeing Matthews trying to kicked us out, never managed to though." said Rafe with a laugh

Before Rafe could finish his thought, a deep voice rumbled Rafe's name to come in to his office.

"See you on the other side." said Rafe as he saluted Danny and walked into the office.

"Close the door!" was the last thing that Danny heard as Rafe disappeared into the office.

Danny must have been sitting there for around an hour before Rafe came out of the office with a smug look on his face.

"Don't do it again McCawley!" shouted Doolittle after him

"Well?" asked Danny

"Well, we're not kicked out, and oh ya, don't do it again!" said Rafe smiling

"Like that will stop us!" replied Danny

"Land of the Free," said Rafe

"Home of the Brave." replied Danny

And with that Danny and Rafe walked out the main tower and headed down to the barracks to rest before afternoon classes.

_Later that afternoon…_

"Mail!" yelled the officer delivering the mail "Christensen, Williams, Fusco, Winkle, Thompson…" he yelled passing out the mail to the men lying in their bunks.

"Sorry Walker, nothing today." he said as passed Danny's bunk

"McCawley!" he said passing Rafe his letters.

"Who are they from?" asked Danny leaning down over top of his bunk to look at Rafe who was below him.

"One from my parents and the another one from Leah." he replied

Danny's head perked up from the sound of Leah's name. It's been a while since they had heard from her and he wanted to hear about how his best friend was doing in her first days of nurse's training. He wanted to make sure she was alright.

"Oh," he said leaning back onto his bed toying with his dog tags, trying to keep the excitement out of his voice.

"Here, I don't want to read this right now." said Rafe handing up Danny one of his letters for him to read. He always felt sorry for him, he didn't have any brothers or sisters, and his mom died when he was around 6. The only family he had left was his good-for-nothing Dad who was probably too drunk to even notice that he even left home. He and Danny had joined up 6 months ago when they were 19.They had always wanted to be pilots, ever since they had watched Rafe's daddy flying as a crop duster. "Make sure you give it back to me though I still want to read it." added Rafe

Danny took the letter in his hands and noticed the delicate writing of Leah. He decided to wait until he had the time to enjoy the letter, so he slipped it underneath his pillow so he could read it later on that night.

_Dinner…_

"Honestly how are they expect us to have the strength to fight the war when their feeding us … I don't know what." said Anthony with a look of disgust on his face

"Shut your trap Tony and eat it, and if you're not I will." said Billy reaching for Anthony's food.

"Hey! I'm eating here." was his reply

" Any who," said Billy "Did you two ladies get chewed out for that little game of chicken this afternoon?" asked Billy

"You honestly think Doolittle would think he would kick out his best pilots?" asked Rafe looking around the table, "That's right."

"I don't know how you guys do it, I swear if it was anyone else they would be out in a second." said Billy snapping his fingers.

"I think that I'm going to turn in." said Danny getting up

"Already, are you sure?" asked Rafe

"Ya, I'm probably goin' to go over the manuals before tomorrow's exam." he replied

"Shit, are you serious, tomorrow?" said Rafe looking rather surprised.

"Nah, I'm just kiddin'." he replied walking away

Danny tired to walk calmly towards the barracks but he couldn't help but speed-walking, he couldn't wait to read Leah's letter. When he came to his bunk he pulled out a pair of boxers and a white wife beater and quickly changed into them. He climbed the side of the bed and hopped onto his bed. He gently took the letter from underneath his pillow and carefully opened it. He couldn't help but laugh when she motioned if they were feeding him well because after tonight's dinner of "Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes". At the end of the letter he felt lonelier then ever he wanted to see Leah right then! At least he would be able to see her in about a month when the medical exams roll around.

He closed up the letter and slipped in his pillowcase and closed his eyes.

"Shit, you can't let this happen." he sighed as he fell into a deep sleep.

End Chapter! Hope you guys liked it. Ok well I'm having a bit of problems with how I'm portraying Danny's character, it's not going the way I wanted it too, so if you guys could just tell me any suggestions or tell me if you thinks it's fine, it would be much appreciated! Thanks a lot. I'll try to update ASAP, but I have a big swim meet this week so I'm not sure how soon. Please help me!

AR


	3. Surprise!

Sorry I haven't updated in a while but this is a fairly long chapter. Hope you all like it. Reviews would as always be much appreciated!

"Wake up, common hurry up!" yelled Betty, jumping onto Leah's bed, fully dressed.

Leah let out grunt of tiredness. She looked over at the clock on her bedside table and noticed that it read 5:30am. Evelyn also started to stir in the bed next to Leah.

"Betty what's goin' on its 5:30 in the morning!" Leah protested

"Medical Exams!" Betty airily said back

Leah answered back with a surprised look on her face she had completely forgotten about the medical exams. She had been waiting for this day ever since she had arrived at nursing school. Today was the day that she would finally be able to see Rafe and Danny.

The past month and been the some best days of her life. She had become extremely close with her roommates Evelyn and Betty. She and Evelyn shared the same views on joining the Nurses Corps, both wanting to support their country in the best way they could. Her and Betty both being so young were always talking about the latest music, films and celebrities. They would sometimes at night turn on the radio and dance around to the latest song by Frank Sinatra or Billie Holiday.

Classes during the day were long and tough, and sometimes it was hard to keep up with all the work they had to do. Her professors were very kind and very knowledgeable, especially Dr. Stewart. This weekend though, they all had a weekend pass and she was planning on making the most of it.

"Alright I'm coming, I'm coming!" said Leah groggily getting out of bed

"You too Ev, hurry up were leaving in 2 hours! How do you expect to look your best when you only have 2 hours to get ready!" said Betty shying Evelyn out of bed.

"Call shower!" said Leah running out of the room so she could get as much hot water as she could.

"Ev can I please do your hair, pretty please? I promise I'll do it right." asked Betty

"I guess so…" she replied

Ever since Leah had started reading them her letters from Rafe and Danny she couldn't help but having the slightest crush on her brother. She liked his carefree attitude, and the way he seemed to always have something to joke about no matter what the situation was. From Leah's description of him he also seemed to be quite the looker. And just in case she had a chance to see him she wanted to look her best.

When Leah came back from the shower she sat down in front of the vanity and thought about what she wanted to do with her hair. She decided that she would leave her hair down and wave it. She pinned up the right side of hair and fastened it down with bobby pins. She finished off her look with a thin layer of mascara and swiping a vibrant shade of red over her lips. She pinned her nurse's cap on top of her head, slipped into her crisp, white nurse's frock and pulled on her favourtie pair of black flats.

"Wow! Leah you look gorgeous, trying to look good for someone unparticular?" asked Betty putting in the last clip into Evelyn's hair.

"Ya, just a little bit." she said feeling the colour rising in her cheeks.

Betty and Evelyn were expecting her to tell her who it was but she kept quite.

"Don't we look spectacular!" said Betty admiring all three of them in the mirror. "If we don't turn heads today, then I think those flyboys have been around men for too long!" she said with a laugh

"Betty!" yelled Leah and Evelyn in unison.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry but it's true!" she replied

"Well ladies I think it's about time we go and get us some flyboys!" said Evelyn

Since it was mid-November is was quite cold outside they all put on their navy blue woolen cloaks and stepped into the sunny cold, sunny morning, to catch the train.

"Snow!" was Leah's response when she stepped outside. The ground outside was dusted white with snow, and falling from the sky was big fat snowflakes.

"I know isn't it horrible!" replied Betty

"Are you kidding me? It's amazing I've never seen it before!"

"You've never seen snow before!" said Betty and Evelyn amazed.

"It doesn't snow in Tennessee you guys." she replied.

Little did Leah know that that day would be full of much more surprises.

_On the train…_

"Finally, it's here! Don't you guys think that you would die if you didn't see any more male attention?" said Betty putting her carry on luggage in the racks above the seats.

"Oh yes! We should plan to go to a swing club or something like that that tonight after we're done with the exams. Get our minds off all the medical stuff, and plus I could use a fun time." said Evelyn

"Amen." repeated Betty

A knock rapped on the glass door of their compartment and outside it stood a group of

Nurses stood there. Leah got up to unlock the door and let them in.

"Can we sit here Toots? Everywhere else is full." said a very pretty nurse with light blonde and a heavy Boston accent.

"Sure you can have a seat." said Leah scooting over on the leather bench to make some room.

She sat there for awhile studying the group that just walked in. There were three girls altogether. One was fairly plain looking with short, dark brown hair and glasses. She seemed very shy but introduced herself as Sandra. The other two both had long blonde hair; one was Martha and seemed rather passive. The other was Barbara; she had a fairly spunky personality and didn't stop talking even though they were strangers.

A couple hours must have gone by before the conductor came into their compartment to tell them they would be arriving in nearly 5 minutes.

Leah suddenly felt the butterflies begin to fly around in her stomach. She then became quite nervous because she was worried about how much both Rafe and Danny had changed. Evelyn noticed her anxiety and reassured her that everything was going to be alright. Evelyn had a sort of matronly quality about her that made anybody at ease whenever they were around her.

The train pulled to a halt with the brakes screeching on the metal tracks, the early sun illuminating the outside.

"Looks rather cold." commented Martha

It did because the steam pluming from the train was fairly visible, and covered the platform with a think layer of fog.

"Well ladies this is it." stated Barbara was they walked outside the train's compartment.

Daytime by the time Leah and the other nurses stepped off the train. She stepped of the train and immediately stepped off the train in search of her best friends. The other nurses followed behind her like giddy 12 year old girls.

The late morning was even crisper then earlier, but still snowing lightly. As she pulled her cloak around her tighter she caught the eye of her brother Rafe and her best friend Danny, standing about 50 feet from where she was standing. Her seeing them warmed her body instantly. She couldn't help but let out a shriek of delight. She sprinted down the steps into a sweeping hug from her brother.

"I can't believe it's you!" she said

"Well, the same with you Nurse McCawley." letting go of her and stepping back to get a better look at her

"Well I'm not going to be an official nurse for another couple weeks." she answered

She couldn't help but smile she was so happy, she had been waiting for this moment for what's seemed like an eternity. At that moment she looked up to find herself staring into the deep, dark brown eyes of her best friend Danny Walker.

"Danny." she said giving him the biggest hug she could muster.

This was the best feeling Danny felt since he had left his home in Tennessee.

"How've you been, Danny?" she asked

"Better now that I know you're here so I can look after you." he said. He liked the way she looked right at that moment with her light brown curls cascading down her shoulders, the snowflakes caught in her eyelashes, and her rosy, cold stricken cheeks.

"Danny, I'm not 13 anymore, I'm a big girl I can look after myself." she playfully said.

They all stood there for a moment, in silence relishing the happiness they felt at that moment.

"Leah!" said a voice coming from behind her

She whipped her head around to see a young doctor with a huge smile on his face.

"Robert!" she yelled back with an even bigger smile on her face. "I'm sorry I'll be back in a second." she yelled to her dumbfounded friends standing on the platform.

She ran to Dr. Robert Stewart jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs around him. She stared into his blue eyes and kissed him lightly on the lips.

At this sight Danny felt his stomach drop and his heart almost rip from his chest. He couldn't but drop his jaw in surprise.

"Who is this guy Rafe, do you know about him?" he asked Rafe trying to keep the sadness out of his voice.

"I have no idea." he said sounding equally as confused.

The fellow nurses standing not that far off were looking at each other with mischievous grins on their faces.

"So that's why she always stayed late after his classes." said Betty to the group of nurses.

They all broke out into laughter.

"It' so good to see you Robert, it's been too long." she sighed sliding off him

"I know Leah, but we're together now and that's all that matters." he said hugging her one more time.

Robert and Leah have been seeing each other for the past 2 and a half weeks, and Robert was everything Leah thought that a real man was supposed to be. He was the one for her.

"Come on Robert come and meet my friends and my brother." she said taking his hand as she started to drag him over towards the group of people.

But he resisted and stood his ground.

"No!" he yelled at her, but then realizing the shocked look on her face, rephrased. "I mean shouldn't we just spend the short time we have together alone?"

"Oh, well, if you want to I guess we can go." she said very disappointed

"But… if you really want to I guess we can go over and say hi, only for a little bit." he replied

"Thank you, Robert, I know you'll love them!" she said with a big smile on her face.

They walked quickly over to the group of people looking very anxious.

"Robert this is my brother Rafe McCawley, Rafe met Dr. Robert Stewart.

"Pleased to meet you." said Rafe reaching his hand out to shake his hand.

"Robert, Danny Walker." she said

He pulled himself up to full height to show this man he was much bigger, and at 6'3 he towered over him. They did not say anything to each other but gave a curdosy hand shake, Danny squeezed a bit harder then he normally would.

He gave him a look over, light blonde hair and pale blue eyes, nothing special really. There was something about his eyes though that made him feel unsteady, his eyes were cold and unfeeling, he did not like this man and he would do anything to show him he was unwanted.

Leah could feel the uneasiness between the two men so she quickly changed the subject.

"Oh I'm sorry ladies." noticing her fellow nurses talking in a tight circle not far from where she was standing, and walked over to them.

"I'm so sorry; I promise I didn't forget about you guys I just got a little bit…held up."

"It's ok Toots, as long you introduce us to those flyboys you've been chatting up." said Barbara

"And tell us more about you and Dr. Stewart!" added Betty

"I will, ok, just not know! Common we have to get going anyways." she said grabbing hold of Evelyn's hand and pulling her towards her brother and his friends.

"Rafe!" she said getting his attention as he was talking to a bunch of other pilots. "Rafe, I would like you to meet my roommates, Betty Anderson and Evelyn Johnson.

"H-h-I there." stuttered Rafe reaching out for Evelyn's hand. "I hear you've been taking mighty fine care of my sister."

Leah had never seen her brother be like this around a girl before.

"Well, I try." she blushed

"And this is Danny Walker." she said turning to her friends to introduce them to Danny.

As they made there introductions Betty couldn't help but turn and give her and open mouthed wink.

"Medical Corps assemble in 5!" screamed the Medical officer on the other side of the platform

"We have to go." said Evelyn to the rest of the group even though she didn't want to.

Leah turned to her brother and gave him a hug.

"I'll see you later this afternoon." she said and turned to Danny.

"Bye Danny, it's good to see you." she said going on her tip toes to kiss him lightly on the cheek.

Danny watched as she turned away and grabbed Robert's hand, the remnants of her warm lips lingering on his cheek. They walked towards the group of fellow nurses and doctors waiting to prepare for this afternoons medical exam.

Well thanks for waiting for the very much delayed update! Hope you liked it, may more surprise yet to come!

AR


	4. Lost and Found

Finally UPDATED, this chappy is the first small intimate part with Danny and Leah, please review!

P.S. Thanks HyperSquishy for the heads up!

Leah was lead to her post by an elderly nurse who seemed quite gruff.

"This is your post for an hour, after another nurse comes to relive you she will tell you where to go after that, and when we say stick em' you stick em', got it?" she said

"I think so." she said rather intimidated for the task at hand.

She spent 5 minutes organizing her station and while she was preparing the vaccinations that she was going to give a rather embarrassing thought crossed her mind. She was going to see hundreds of men's behinds this afternoon and what if one of them turned out to be Rafe or heaven forbid Danny. She let her mind wander for a few moments imagining what Danny's behind might actually look like. Embarrassed, she quickly wiped the smirk off her face. She waited another moment for her face to reduce back to its normal colour after becoming a rather dark shade of crimson. After about 5 minutes of her preparing mentally and physically for what she was about to do she called out of the first solider who walked rather briskly into her station.

He looked rather young and rather nervous. He asked her if it was necessary to actually give him the shot, and if he did if it would hurt. He played pity on this young solider and quickly yet gently gave him the shot. Others behind him were not as lucky. A first she felt a tiny bit embarrassed and awkward give the men these shots. But after about 10 men she quite got the hang of it. On the contrary it was rather fun. Some men even tried to get a bit too personal. But Leah would just lean over their shoulder and whisper seductively into their ear "Don't get fresh." and jab them quite violently with the needle. That would always quite their mouths.

Many times Betty and Evelyn would watch soldiers exiting her stall vigorously rubbing their tender behinds. They could help but laugh quietly to themselves for they knew they would probably do the same thing.

Leah was almost done her shift and was cleaning up the counter and packing up her medical forms. The she heard a deep voice from behind her back ask. "Got time for one more Miss?"

"Sure I do flyboy, lean on that table there with your back to me please." she stated with her back still to the man. "File please." she asked as she turned around to receive the medical file of the officer.

The man standing with his backside to her just stood there. Leah could help but admire him. "One of the better one's today" she thought to her. She smiled to herself. But that mop an untidy brown hair began to look oddly familiar.

"Oh. Hey there." she stammered out rather embarrassed of her thoughts.

Danny turned around to face Leah. Quite flustered he handed her his file.

"Hey Le." he said quite casually, trying to sound that she saw his butt everyday. Then faced the wall again so she would see hi turn a delicate shade of pink.

"Right then." she said preparing to give Danny his shot. She was quite nervous and accidentally slipped, she inserted the needle a little harder then she actually intended.

Danny let out a small grunt of pain.

"Omigod, Danny I'm so sorry it was an accident." she rambled out.

"Oh no, it's ok, I'm alright. Nothing I can't handle." he croaked his eyes a bit watery. Gathering his thoughts he said through stinging pain." You comin tonight to the club?" he asked

"Ya I think so, you know with the girls." she answered back still a bit embarrassed by her slip up.

"See you there." he answered back.

He sort of waddled out of the station rubbing his butt vigorously.

Leah looked over only to catch the eye of her beau Robert Stewart, sitting at a desk finalizing the soldiers medical exams. He looked furious.

Betty and Evelyn on looked into Leah's station, having just witnessed the event that just occurred.

"Do you think that she likes Danny?" asked Betty

"I don't know she told me she didn't, but I wouldn't be surprised if she did, you've seen they way she acts when she around him. She instantly gets this huge smile that I've only seen when she's around him." answered Evelyn

"I think they would be the most handsome couple." said Betty dreamily

"They both just have to realize the best thing that they got going for each other, is right in front of their noses." she said quite matter of factly.

"She is quite stubborn though we might have to some underground weaseling, if you know what I mean Ev." she said with a smile.

"Yes, Betty, yes I do." she said mischievously

Before they could finish their conversation a group of 2 soldiers waltzed over to Evelyn's station, both looking rather nervous.

Evelyn knew exactly who they were, and tried to wipe the smile off her face.

"File please." she said rather calmly, to Rafe McCawley standing right in front of her.

"Yes, mam." he replied

"Well, let's see Lieutenant McCawley please read the last line with your right eye." she said

"Oh, no this is it." said Leah glancing over to Evelyn's station and noticing Rafe waiting to take his eye exam. She noticed him looking rather uncomfortable. Her brother Rafe had always had a problem with letters. No one has ever been able to understand what was wrong with him. One thing everyone knew was that there was nothing wrong with his vision. Nothing. He could shoot a running rabbit with a $3.00 pistol if he wanted to. She looked over to where they were again.

She noticed Rafe pleading with Evelyn; she knew that she was thinking of taking her wings away.

"Please don't take my wings away." Rafe begged her. "You would be doing this country a big favour if you did."

Evelyn looked him over once then looked back to his file. She then picked up a stamp and stamped on his file, approved.

"Don't let this country down." she said rather sternly

"Yes mam, I will make it up to you." he said with the huge sigh of relief and walked away.

"Thank you Ev, I knew you wouldn't let us down." said Leah to herself.

The rest of the afternoon went by rather slowly. She tried to avoid Danny because what she had done later on in the afternoon. Whenever she did see him however, she would smile weakly and pretend she had something fairly important she had to do. When the afternoon finally came to the end Leah left with the other nurses.

They stepped out into the brisk evening; it had been snowing all day so every thing was slippery. They wrapped there thick woolen cloaks around their bodies.

Remembering that she left her purse at her station, she quickly apologized to her friends.

"I'm sorry I'll be out in a second, don't wait for me, I know you guys need the maximum amount of time to get ready." she laughed

"You know us all too well." Betty stated with a grin.

Leah sprinted through the gigantic double doors, of the stone building that the exams were conducted in. She finally found her purse neatly tucked away underneath a steel trolley.

She then walked briskly back to the front. It was dark outside so she was bit frightened to walk home by herself, with all those soldiers, with to much alcohol and time on their hands, running around loose.

As she stepped out she quickly scanned the area in search for the quickest way to walk home. She then noticed Evelyn sitting on the steps with some solider. She couldn't see who it was because his back was turned.

"Good for her." she thought "She needs someone to loosen up with." She then laughed quietly to her self, and then started down the large fight of stone steps.

She decided to walk through the park as a short cut. But as soon as she did she regretted the decision because this action did not help her nerves. Leah tried her best to ignore the cat-calls and wolf whistles that were thrown at her from various groups of people as she walked. She started to sing to her self to calm herself. She looked around the dark park, nothing seemed familiar.

"Shit, where am I." she said quietly to herself

Lost and scared she picked up her pace to a run.

She stared down a pair of slippery steps. Suddenly she heard rustling behind her, and whipped around to see what it was. She lost her footing on the icy steps and tumbled down side ways all the way to the bottom.

She couldn't help but let out a shriek of despair. Leah sat there for a moment in shock, and then she heard of pair of feet running towards her.

"Oh please God, don't let it be anyone bad." she prayed slightly, for there was probably a lot of people willing to take advantage of a young girl alone, and hurt. She tried to get up.

"Leah, Leah is that you?" said a deep voice

She was surprised to hear a voice calling her name.

The person walked up to her and bent down to look at her. This person was Danny Walker.

"Danny! What are you doing here?" she said rather surprised.

"Well you know, just looking around." he said quite dismissively

Getting to his feet he extended his hand to her.

"Let me help you up." he offered

She didn't say anything but she grabbed his hand lightly and he pulled her to her feet.

"Thanks." she stated

They stood there for a little while in the dark just looking at each other, not knowing what else to say.

Danny broke the silence by asking,

"Why are you walking though the park alone this late at night, why aren't you with the other nurses?"

"I left late and I decided to take a short cut through the park."

"You do realize what park this is right?"

"No not really, I've never been here before remember."

"Well for starters you don't walk through Central Park as a short cut, it's fairly large." he stated, laughing at her.

"Well, I'm sorry Mr. Walker, I didn't realize." she said jokingly

"Mr. Walker? Since when have I been Mr. Walker?" he asked

"Since, well...now I guess." she said trailing off.

"We should probably get back soon, or your doctor will start getting worried." said Danny placing his hands in his pockets.

"Yes I suppose so." she blushed for no apparent reason.

They walked in silence for the next 20 minutes until they reached Leah's quarters, a small townhouse nestled on the suburbs of downtown New York.

"This is it." she said a she turned into the small gate that enclosed a small courtyard in front of her quarters. "I'll see you tonight."

"Should be fun." he said unenthusiastically. He had never been the type of person who enjoyed dancing.

Leah laughed quietly to herself knowing how much Danny hated going out, quite the contrary to herself.

"Well I guess I should be getting back so you know they don't get worried." said Leah

"I'll see you tonight, Leah." he said turning to leave

"Wait!" said Leah reaching out to touch his arm. "Thank you Danny."

He was unsure what she was thanking him for but his thoughts were broken when Leah suddenly pulled him into a tight embrace. He was startled by the act but was quick to wrap his arms around her shoulders and pull her in closer. Time seemed to stand still as Leah and Danny stood in cold evening wrapped in an intimate embrace. Danny broke the silence by lifting his head from hers to whisper something into her ear, in such a soft whisper she could not hear what he said. She wrapped her arms even tighter around him so she wouldn't fall, her hands pressing into his muscular back. The hot trails of his breath on her neck made her knees weaken and a fire erupt in the deepest part of her soul. It just made her want to take him right then and there.

Leah then realized what was happening and quickly but gently pulled away placing her hands on his chest, blushing.

"Goodnight Danny." she said as she leaned up to give the sweetest, softest kiss she could muster and planted it on the corner of his cherry lips.

Before Danny could even respond to what just happened she had already disappeared into the house.

He stood dumbstruck for a few moments then ran his hands over his face and through his hair. He took a deep breath then started to walk towards the base, to get ready to go out tonight.

Leah was leaning on the outer wall of her house as she watched Danny walk away, making her feel rather miserable. She tried to slow her breathing and gain her composure before she entered her home but waves of chills were constantly pulsing through her body which slowed her down.

"What have you done?" she breathed to herself before she swept around the corner walked into her house.

The second that she turned the door knob and stepped into the door she was immediately surrounded by a mass of young girls screeching at the tops of their lungs, trying to pull her away and interrogating her with an array of different questions.

Her stomach sank to the floor as she realized that they probably all ad watched her and Danny's little "display." But, to her relief this was not the case.

"Where have you been?"

"We were all so worried about you."

"Where did you go?"

Flabbergasted by the moments that took place previously in the evening and the torrent of questions that were being asked she just looked at them, awestruck and open-mouthed. It took her a couple of moments to get her bearings and answer them. On the contrary however, a wave of relief swept through her body as she realized that they weren't asking her about Danny.

"I was well, I was…I fell behind at the examinations and I walked through the park, I got lost, I found my way out though, it was creepy in there I'll tell you!" she half stammered, leaving out the part about Danny.

"Oh yes and Evelyn while I was leaving I saw you on the steps with some flyboy, and I want to know all the details!" added Leah with a mischievous grin plastered on her face.

Evelyn blushed rather profusely; her cheeks deepening to a dark crimson. "I well, you know just your ordinary dazed and confused pilot." she stated

She was not dumb and she could tell that Evelyn did not want to talk about it so she did not press her.

"I think I'm going to go and get ready for tonight, you girls wanna come with me?" asked Leah looking at the group of girls before her.

"Thank God, about time we've been waitin' on ya all night!" exclaimed Barbara

As the group of giddy girls retreated to their bed and bathrooms to prepare themselves for the evening, someone grabbed Leah by her hand and whipped her around the corner of the stairs. It was Betty who stood with a mischievous look on her face.

"Didn't think I wouldn't notice did ya? I see everything Leah; you're a naughty, naughty girl! And also Leah your tights are ripped."

She glanced down at her legs and noticed the three huge runs in her nylons. She cursed silently to herself for with rationing she would not be able to buy a new pair anytime soon.

Before she could retort or defend herself Betty had already disappeared up the steps.

Very, very sorry for the much needed update!


	5. Forgive Me

**Hello everybody! I have decided to update just in time before I leave for winter camping so I hope you enjoy this chapter. It kind of long in hopes of trying to tide you guys over until I can update again. So once again reviews would be much appreciated! Thanks for all you guys who have reviewed already, you rock!**

Leah stumbled up the stairs still in shock from Betty's confrontation.

"_Hopefully she has enough sense not to tell anybody, especially Robert, he would defiantly take it the wrong way. I couldn't bear losing him I think… I think I am in love with Robert Stewart." _she thought to herself, but then an image of Danny and their time together moments before made a wave surge through her body with as much force as a tidal wave.

She was utterly confused.

She walked up the stairs and into the bathroom where the girls were busy curling their hair and apply making chatting wildly about what they were planning to do later that night.

Once they noticed her walk into the room they all abruptly stopped what they were doing and looked at her with blank expressions, sometimes their composure broke and they exchanged grins. They stood there for an awkward moment that seemed to be an eternity.

"_I swear to God the moment I'm with Betty alone I'm going to kill her!"_ she thought to herself, feeling the rage bubbling up into her, the colour rising in his cheeks ,as she realized that Betty must of told all of them. She glared furiously at Betty.

The well renowned McCawley temper was ready to burst. She was not ready to cause a scene right then when they all were so excited about the evening. She took two deep breaths and started to address the group, like nothing was wrong.

"Well what are you girls gawking at? Don't you want to maximize you're time for getting ready?" and she walked up behind Sandra to help her pin up the remainder of her hair.

Some of the girls let out a sigh of despair; they were hoping that Leah would fill in all the details about her and Danny.

For the duration of the next hour they had all had their hair curled and pinned and their make-up fully done.

Leah was the last one to be fully ready. She quickly slided two thick coats of black mascara on her long eyelashes and a coat bright red lipstick over her plump lips.

To finish off her look she slipped into a knee length semi-tight red dress, which hugged all her curves in just the right places. It was the dress that her cousin Kelly had given her for her 18th birthday just last May. The dress itself was quite scandalous and her mother and father nearly had a heart attack when she opened it. But her parents were far from here and she wanted to look really good. She then placed a set of shiny black pumps that she had just purchased in a high end store in downtown New York. Leah pulled out a small box out of the top drawer of her dresser. It was a bottle of Chanel °5 that Robert had purchased for her last week in celebration of their 1 month anniversary. It was one of the nicest things that she owned. She took the round bottle out of the box a spritzed one spray on her neck underneath her jaw line, and one on her wrist.

She stood up and walked over to full length mirror by the door. She stared at her self for a while playing with her hair and readjusting her dress. She seemed different to herself, more grown up somehow. The time she has spent with these older girls the new found responsibilities of being a nurse. She liked the new her though, it was different but she liked it.

Her reverie was broken was she heard a small gasp from behind her, it was Evelyn.

"You look absolutely ravishing!" she breathed walking towards her. "You look so grown up!" she examined.

"Thanks Ev, I really am excited about tonight." she said butterflies dancing around in the pit of her stomach. "You look quite dazzling yourself." she admired.

She really did though; her dark chestnut hair shined in the light, her turquoise dress flattered her figure, and the colour made her deep blue eyes pop.

"If you don't stop any man dead in their track they would have to be blind!" Leah said complimenting Evelyn.

"Those are my intentions." Evelyn whispered silently to herself.

"What did you say?" asked Leah hearing a glimpse of her speech.

"Nothing… just talking to myself." she quickly said

It wasn't nothing though; it was a very big something.

Leah was right when she noticed Evelyn sitting on the steps of the medical building, but she did not know all of the details. The truth was she had been with Rafe, and it had been one of the most genuinely romantic experiences of her life. She relished very moment of it and she was in awe that something this wonderful had finally happened to her: _Someone_ so incredibly wonderful.

"Are you ok Ev, is there something wrong?" questioned Leah genuinely concerned.

"_No quite the contrary!"_ Evelyn thought to herself before answering Leah. "Yes, yes I'm alright, we should be getting ready you know all the other girls will be waiting for us."

Evelyn followed Leah out of the bedroom, but before stepping out of the room smiled and sighed to herself for she knew that she would be seeing Rafe again tonight.

Leah walked down the flight of weathered oak steps to the voice of Robert Stewart coming from the living room. Her paces quickened as the volume of his voice became more defined, until she was almost running down to meet him.

"Robert!" she exclaimed walking up to meet him, delicately planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Hello gorgeous." he said returning her gesture but this time kissing her on her lips.

She followed his eyes as he slowly looked her up and down, for a moment she thought she saw a glimpse of anger, but it was so insignificant she doubted that she even saw it at all.

"I have something for you." he stated while he reached out behind him and pulled out a single red rose. "A perfect flower for the perfect woman." he added handing it to her.

The other girls looked at each other and let out small "awe's" from the display of affection Robert had just shown.

Leah reached out and received the gift. She brought the flower to her nose and inhaled the fresh scent of the flower.

She closed her eyes for a moment and let herself be flown back to her childhood when she would spend hours with her mother tending to their award-winning rosebushes, while the warm Tennessee sun warmed their backs. Those were some the best times she spent with her mother. Their garden did not last long though, for the week after Rafe attempted to fly off he barn with wings designed by Danny and crushed the flowers on his rather hard impact. He broke his leg in the process. Leah did not talk to him for the next two weeks.

Slowly coming back to reality she looked Robert in the eyes, "Thank you Robert, there're lovely, let me just put them in water before we go." With that she rushed out of the room and to put the flower in a vase full of water.

When she walked out of the kitchen everyone else was already waiting at the front doors with their coats on.

"We really have to be going the boys will be already be waiting for us." stated Robert

"Alright I'm coming." said Leah grabbing her purse off the table, Robert helping her put on her coat, then the party left the house.

Robert walked hand in hand for the 15 minute walk to wards the club. A place called Lulu's which, was quite the hot swing club.

As the group approached towards the club they noticed another group of around seven pilots standing around in their full dress uniforms. Danny and Rafe were among them.

As they approached Leah made a silent vow not to say a word to Danny so it wouldn't be as awkward.

"Hey Rafe!" she said going to approach her brother and gave him a warm hug.

"Hey there flyboys wanna introduce us to some of you're friends?" asked Betty talking to Danny.

"Uh-ya – sure." he stated

Once the group was well enough acquainted they all decided to enter the club to have some fun, though the coldness between Danny and Robert still existed.

The second the walked through the double doors of the club they were over whelmed by smoke the sounds of a Big Band blaring on the stage. The club was filled with numerous groups of people, mostly army personnel and their dates.

A very young bubbly waitress approached them and led them to a rather large rounded booth so that all of them could fit rather comfortably at the table.

"Can I start all of y'all with a drink?" she asked pulling out a piece of paper and a pen.

They all ordered there various drinks, all of them alcoholic.

"Scotch on the rocks, please." ordered Leah

Everyone looked at her in surprise because most of the other girls at there table were ordering glasses of wine.

Rafe shot her a look of warning because he knew her tolerance, and it wasn't that high. If she had too much she would regret it in the morning. She just glared at him and continued to order.

"_I'm not going to let Rafe ruin my night, trying to be a good brother." _she thought to herself.

When their drinks arrived she downed hers in one large gulp and was quick to order another.

As the night progressed everyone became to get more comfortable with one another, with a lot of help by "liquid encouragement." Leah noticed as everyone became more glassy-eyed and talked a lot louder then was necessary, including her.

There party began to dissipate as the night wore on, leaving there table almost empty. She wasn't having much fun because Robert was very anti-social and making that he didn't want to be there very apparent. She decided to take a break from Robert surliness and went to find where everyone went. She stumbled out of the table and staggered towards the washroom. She was very drunk by now and did not really know what she was doing.

She then stumbled upon Barbara and Billy kissing feverously in the corner of the washroom.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." she drunkenly giggled, and walked out of the bathroom.

She needed to find people to hang out with, she was bored! So she decided to make her way back to the table.

Leah was very frustrated with Robert because he was being so rude and anti-social, so she decided that she was not going to let him ruin her night.

"_I don't care whether he gets mad at me or not, he can sit there for all I care, I'm going to have some fun!"_ she thought to herself as she walked over to her table.

She did not notice Robert get up with a frustrated look on his face and leave the table. Leah just shrugged it off.

She completely forgot about her pact not to talk to Danny that night and slide in beside him.

"Danny!" she yelled at him playfully pushing him on the shoulder.

"Oh… hey Leah." taken aback by her behavior

"Why are you sitting here all by yourself? Don't you wanna have some fun?" she questioned him.

"I am having fun, you know just sitting here." he lied.

Leah knew him all too well to realize that he wasn't having fun and he didn't just like sitting there.

"Come with me." she said with a small smile grabbing his hand and pulled him to his feet. "Let's dance." she added in a whisper.

"You're drunk." he said trying to resist.

"So are you." she laughed "Now common let's go." she said trying to pull him up with all her strength.

"Alright, alright, _one_ dance." he finally gave in.

They walked hand in hand as he led her to the crowed dance floor. The song that was playing died down, and the crowed started to applaud. A few minutes later the band stuck up a slow song and a female singer, sang in a soft hum.

Danny took her soft, warm hand in his and gently slipped his arm around her waist. She then followed his lead and gracefully rested her hand on his muscular shoulder.

They slowly started to sway to the music, their steps perfectly matching the rhythm of the song. Leah then gently rested her head on his shoulder her face gently facing his neck. She quietly studied his neck and realized how much she liked the small mole that lay just below his jaw. The urge to ravish his neck with kisses suddenly rushed through her body; it took all her strength to restrain herself. She started to blush furiously at the thought.

"1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3." thought Danny silently trying keep the beat. He knew he was not that great of a dancer it would be mortifying if he accidentally stepped on her feet. After a while he became more comfortable and let his thoughts wander. He liked the way her hand felt in his, her head on his shoulder, the way her hair smelt, everything about her was perfect. And so was the moment. It was at this moment he knew this was the girl he truly was in love with, the girl he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

"What are you smiling about." he asked with a smile, identical to hers.

"Nothing I'm just thinking." And she was a whole new wave of confusion was swirling around in her mind.

She the felt and hand on her shoulder and released her hand from Danny's. She came face to face with Robert.

She smiled. "Robert where have you been, I've been looking for you."

"I just took a quick breather outside." he said completely ignoring Danny's existence." It getting kinds later, do you wanna get outta here?" looking down at his watch.

"If you wanna." she said not wanting to leave herself.

"Ya, ok." he said grabbing her hand and pulling her out of Danny's arms.

She took one last look at Danny trying to get the message "sorry" in her eyes. She thought he got it because he shot her the extract same look. His deep brown eyes were full of understanding. That's what she liked about him; he always got whatever she was going through and never asked any questions. He then walked slowly off the dance floor and out of sight.

Leah and Robert walked hand in hand until they were outside the club and walked around the corner. As they walked his grip tightened around her wrist.

"Robert stop you're hurting me." she said

"Oh, I'm sorry _I'm _hurting _you_?" he stated with a snarl. "Who the hell were you tonight." he said, his eyes full of hatred.

"Wha-what do you mean?" she stammered, her breath staggering.

"You know exactly what I mean, you slut." he said and raised his hand and slapped her with the back of his hand across her face.

The sheer force of the blow sent her falling to her to her hands and feet, a small trail of blood flowing from her nose.

"Don't you _ever_ disrespect me like that again, what the hell do you think you where doing with him?" he asked kneeling down and started to shake Leah violently by the shoulders. "I own you, don't you understand, you're my property, don't you every do that again. You're nothing better then a common tramp."

With that he shoved her down to the ground, her head smacking against the pavement.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Robert I didn't mean to hurt you, please don't be mad at me." she begged through tears.

"Good, make sure I never have to do this again." he said begging to walk away.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" said a deep booming voice from behind them. It was a furious Danny who had seen the whole ordeal.

"Well, well look who it is." said Robert mockingly, walking towards Danny.

"You have 5 seconds to walk away or I will beat you to within seconds of your own pitiful life." Danny said "5…4…3…"

"Give it up man, you lost, I got the girl." he smiled

"2… 1…" said Danny and punched Robert squarely in the nose, sending him rocketing to the cold concrete. The ground was soon covered with crimson blood.

"Danny no, stop it you're killing him!" wailed Leah trying to pull Danny off Robert. Danny's hand was latched on the collar of Robert's shirt and repeatedly laying hard punches in to his face.

After a few moments he stopped and stood up an unconscious Dr. Robert Stewart at his feet.

"What was that?" cried Leah, yelling at Danny. "Look what you've done; he'll never want to come back to me now."

"You want to go back to him?" he asked exasperated. "Look what he did to you!" he said raising his voice in frustration.

"It was an accident he never meant to hurt me." she yelled.

"I would _never_ hit you Leah, and you know that, you're too good for him."

"You've ruined me Danny, I _hate _you!" she yelled at him slapping him across the face.

The sting of the hit wasn't even as painful as the words which tore his heart apart. He was silenced; no words could express his anguish.

But just a few moments afterwards she fell silent as passed out.

Danny rushed to her side and knelt down beside her.

"Please forgive me." he whispered brushing a piece of hair from her eyes.

With that he swept her up in his arms and began to carry her home.

When they reached her small townhouse, Danny quietly opened the door and walked silently up the stairs.

He reached her bedroom door and turned the doorknob. The room was small but quaint and her bed was in the far left and corner.

He laid her in her bed and carefully pulled the thick duvet up to her shoulders.

He stood there for a few moments then he leaned down and softly kissed her forehead.

"Sweet dreams, my love."

With that he walked out of the room and headed to his own barracks.


	6. You Are Forgiven

**I'm not sure why I have so much trouble updating, but thanks so much for everyone for reviewing, I hope you enjoy this fluffy chappie! **

Leah McCawley woke up to the sound of morning birds chirping wildly from the tree near her window. She looked at her wristwatch and it read 8:34am. She let out an exasperated groan. She had a headache that made her feel that her head was being wrenched in half with an axe. She buried herself even deeper into her pillows.

"This is way, waytoo early to be awake." she thought to herself, almost forgetting about the events of last night.

Almost, is the key word, for the moment after a whirr of images and sounds came flooding into her head.

"What have I done?" she whispered, tears brimming in her eyes.

"That's what I would like to know." replied a voice from the corner.

Leah nearly fell out of her bed in terror for she thought she was alone. But she wasn't, Evelyn was sitting in the old rocking chair in the corner.

Leah quickly tried to cover up her face, a blackish-purple bruise was forming around her eye and a trickle of dried blood ran under her nose.

"Oh please Leah, you don't think I already know?" she replied in a huff getting up and walking up to the end of her bed.

"N-nothing happened what you are talking about?" she stammered trying to avoid Evelyn who was now sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Alright…nothing happened but let me take a look at you alright?"

Evelyn leaned over to her and started examining her eye.

"I'll be right back, I have to go and get some ice for that eye."

She rushed out of the room and returned a short tie after with a bowl full of hot water and a bag of ice.

Evelyn first dabbed a washcloth under her nose to wash away the blood and applied the cold compress to her eye.

The two girls sat in silence for a while just looking at each other. It was excruciating for Leah, then she could not longer hold in her agony she let out a long sob.

Tears streamed down her face and her breaths turned into short choking heaves.

"I feel so ashamed!" she choked through her tears.

Evelyn jumped to her side and immediately and wrapped her arms tightly around her.

"Leah, look at me this was not your fault, any of it, your safe." she replied in a strong, reassuring tone.

"No it's not that, it's…it's something else." she cried

The pain of her concussion and the mix of her crying made her head ache so much she gently fell asleep on her pillows.

"Poor thing." sighed Evelyn as she walked out of her room.

Leah did not wake up again until then next morning; she was feeling better but was extremely hungry. She walked down stairs expecting to find her roommates chatting madly around a cup of coffee, but to her surprise the room was empty. She walked over to the refrigerator and silently opened the door.

"You've been asleep for a while." said a voice from behind her.

She nearly jumped out of her skin but as she turned around she was not surprised about who she found sitting at the kitchen table. Rafe.

"I have been worried sick about you lately Leah, wanna tell me what's up?" he asked casually but she new he wanted to know the whole story. Something at the moment she wasn't prepared to tell him.

"I can't tell you right now, I'm just not ready to." she said tears welling up in her eyes.

A sheer look of sadness wept across his face as he hesitated for a second.

"But you're o.k. now, right? Please tell me I have to know before I go." he pleaded

She was confused. "What are you talking about Rafe?"

"I'm…going away, Leah, soon." he replied looking straight at her, rising from his chair.

"What do you mean, where are you going, back to the base? Tennessee? Tell me where are you going?" she said her voice growing louder and quicker. A hard lump grew in her throat she was going to cry.

"No, I'm- well um- I'm going to England, to fight." he quietly said.

All words escaped her in that single second. She just stared at him dumbfounded for a few moments. Her eyes began to well up with tears.

"How can you, I don't understand. You are in the Untied Sates Army." she choked out, growing angry.

"Doolittle assigned me on this, they need able airmen to help out the war effort over there." walking towards her.

"Assigned you? He assigned you! I'm too old to believe our lies anymore Rafe. I know you all too well you volunteered didn't you? What if you die Rafe, what happens then? You're just going to leave everyone who loves and cares for you here with nothing? If you die it will kill me." she was livid.

Rafe walked closer to her. "Fine, I did volunteer, all I've ever wanted to do is fly, and you know that! I'm going over there because they need my help, everything that I've been doing for all these years have led me up to these final moments! And if I die, promise me you'll move on, forget about me and live your life, get married and have lot's of kids, but name at least one of them Rafe, alright." he said with a laugh.

He always knew how to make her feel better. "I'm not going to change your mind am I?" she said with a smile.

"Nope." replied Rafe stubbornly

With a sad sigh Leah walked over to give Rafe a hug. They hugged in silence for a while, before they broke apart and looked at each other.

"When do you leave?" asked Leah

"This evening."

"Oh, it's a bit sooner then expected but…" her sentence trailed off.

"I'm really sorry Leah; I couldn't get it out sooner. But, I really want you to be there tonight ok?"

"I wouldn't miss seeing you off for the world."

"I'm gunna miss you Goosie." using the nickname for her, that he hasn't used in years.

"Me too Rafe."

With her final words he turned around and walked out of the house into the frigid winter morning.

_That evening…_

Danny and Rafe sat in the local bar saying their final goodbyes before they left for the train station.

They tried to stay off the topic of the dangers of Rafe leaving until the subject became unavoidable.

"Danny I need you to do something for me, if anything happens I need you to look after my girls, especially Leah, she needs you."

Realizing that Rafe was being up most serious for once, he didn't joke around either.

"Of course."

"_That's the only thing that I have ever wanted to do."_ he added the last statement on mentally.

But then he remembered how mad she was at him for last night, and a wave of sadness filled him as he thought he could never be with her.

"Well, I guess we best be off before I miss the train." said Rafe standing up and putting on his jacket.

"Remember Rafe, always keep it right."

"Righty tighty." he replied

_At the train station…_

Rafe and Danny stood alone in the enormous stone lobby of the train station waiting for Rafe's train to be called to the platform.

"Is Leah and Evelyn gunna show up?" asked Danny casually

"Leah told me she was gunna show up but you never know and Evelyn well, I'm hoping she'll show up but I told her not to come." replied Rafe.

"Why the hell did you tell her not to come." asked Danny confused

"Because." Rafe said with a mischievous smile. "If I tell her to come and she comes, it means nothing, but, if I tell her not to come and she does she loves me."

"So it's a test."

"In a way yes." he said with a smile.

"You have a twisted mind Rafe." Danny said with a small laugh.

"Rafe!" screamed a voice from behind them

Both Rafe and Danny were happy to see Leah running towards them the clicks of her heels echoing loudly in the stone hall.

"I'm so sorry I'm late, the taxi never came and I thought I missed you." her breath laboured from running.

"It's okay Leah calm down you didn't miss us." said Rafe placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

It didn't even cross her mind that Danny would be there. She felt ashamed and very upset about how she had treated him that night. She had accepted the fact that he was only tried to protect her. She hated herself for how she treated him. But she didn't know what to say to make it better. Leah felt that the only way she could live with herself was to ignore Danny completely, even though it killed her to do so.

So that's what she did. The only thing she said to him was hello.

"Train 207 is now boarding on platform 9!" boomed a voice over the loud speaker.

"Well that's my train." said Rafe looking at both Danny and Leah putting his hands in his pockets.

Leah told herself before she left that she could not cry, but it was too much for her to bear and she just let her tears stream down her face. She wanted Danny to come and give her a big hug and tell her everything was going to be ok, but it never happened, he kept his distance.

"Hey come here." said Rafe pulling Leah into a big hug. "Everything's going to be alright, don't worry about it I'll be back before you know it." he whispered into her ear.

"You have to promise me that you'll write me everyday ok."

"I promise." he replied giving her one last squeeze.

"Love ya big brother I'll miss you." she said pulling away

"Love ya too Goosie."

"Play it safe, Rafe and don't do anything stupid to get yourself knocked out this thing." said Danny giving Rafe a brotherly embrace and clapping him on his back.

"Don't worry about me Danny, and remember your promise just incase." he added in a whisper.

"I will but just make sure you come back so I don't have to fulfill that."

"Final boarding call for train 207!"

"Well I'll see you two soon." he said giving Leah one last hug.

He picked up his bags and then started to head out towards his platform without looking back.

Leah's tears began to flow faster as they began to roll off her cheek and on to the stone floor.

All Danny wanted to do was comfort her and hold her in his arms, but she was being so cold towards him, he didn't dare to get close.

"I'm sorry Danny, but I have to go I can't stay here any longer." she said wiping away her tears.

"Ya I think I'm going to head out in a while too, do you need me to order you a cab?" he asked

"No I can do it myself."

And before he could reply she turned on her heel and briskly walked away.

"Damn it you should have said something!" Danny cursed himself under his breath as he ran his fingers through his hair.

As he stood there he saw Evelyn sprinting towards him.

"Danny! Danny! Where's Rafe has he left yet?" e said out of breath

"Ya but if you hurry up you might be able to catch him." he said pointing in the direction where he was.

"Thank you thank you so much!" she said as she was running off.

"There you go Rafe, she loves you." replied Danny as he started to walk out of the station.

Danny waited out side the train station waiting for his cab to come when he saw Leah sitting on a bench crying into her hands. He looked at her contemplating whether he should go over there or not. But after a few moments he decided not to because she was already deeply upset and he didn't want to cause her any more pain. It took everything he had to turn away from her and walk farther down the road.

He stood waiting in the cold night air thinking about how he was going to win Leah friendship back, until he felt a small tap on his shoulder. He whipped around and when he did he was face to face with Leah.

"Leah! Wha-um- are, are you alright? I mean I know you're not alright, but ya… I'm just going to shut up." he said perplexed at why she wanted to talk to him.

"I need to tell you something, something I've been meaning to tell you for a couple of days now." she said staring into dark brown eyes. "I'm sorry Danny, I'm so sorry for everything, for how I treated you, for ignoring you for everything, I'm sorry." she said the tears yet again began to steadily stream down her face as continued to look up into is soft eyes.

Danny stood there for a moment just staring at her.

"It's ok Leah, its alright." he said pulling by the waist into a hug. "I could never be mad even if I tried." he said kissing her on her forehead, and pulling a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

Danny felt invigorated by the fact she was not mad at him anymore, he did not dare to say it out loud but very time he kissed her head he would say I love you.

They stood in frigid night for a few moments wrapped in a tight embrace whispering apologies and sweet nothings back to one another until Leah lifted her head off from under his chin and stared up at him. Before she knew it she was on her toes leaning towards his cheek when she had seconds thoughts, she changed paths and kissed him lightly on the lips.

She pulled away quickly horrified at what she just did, then when she thought Danny was going to yell at her, he leaned down and kissed her gently in return. She was stunned for a moment, then smiled slightly to herself and kissed him back with slightly more force. Danny slipped his hands from he shoulders down her back and held her tightly by her waist and Leah pulled him in close by slipping her arms around his neck. They kissed passionately for a few moments, soaking up there happiness but before it could become even more heated, Leah pulled away gave Danny a sweet smile, she kissed him lightly on the lips. "I can't tell you how long I've waited for that." she whispered in his ear and ran to a cab and drove away.

Danny stood there dumbfounded. "What just happened?" he thought to himself. The remnants of her soft lips on his, made him smile as he wondered whether she meant what she had said because he was thinking the same thing too. But then it hit him that she had just taken his cab and he was going to have to wait outside longer. It didn't matter to him though, because the thought of Leah kept him warm.


	7. Too Late to Say Goodbye

_I'm oh so very, very very sorry for the longest wait in updation history!!! That last chapter kind of ran me into a wall so it took some time to get around it... buthopefully i've figured it out! I know this chapter is very short but I hope it sets the story up for the other chappies! Enjoy! _

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_Dear Rafe,_

_I can't believe that it's been three weeks since I have last seen you! I'm truly sorry that I haven't written you yet, but I wasn't sure if you would get this letter when you arrived in England .Well, the girls and I are all officially Navy nurses; we had our graduation last Friday. I only wish you were there to see it. Momma and Daddy came from Jackson to see it. They send there love. Anyway I hope all is safe and that you are well. Danny sends his love as well. I hope you are well and those Tommies are keeping you safe._

_Love your sister,_

_Leah_

Danny, a word that passed through her mind regularly after their "incident" at the train station. She had been fighting with herself for the past couple of weeks whether she truly did like Danny or she kissed him in the heat of the moment. But she could no longer fight with herself she was in love with Daniel Walker. But she just hasn't had the time between exams and graduation to go and visit him. And on Danny's side he's been training very long hours lately.

The rumour around the base was that the nursing corps were going to be shipped off to Peal Harbor, and she wanted to see Danny before she left. No one was sure when they were going to leave so she knew she had to do it soon before it was too late.

Everyone seemed to be very excited to be going to Hawaii, except for Evelyn, who seemed to be quieter and more repressed then usual, but she wasn't why. Evelyn would spend long amounts of time alone in her room and go out for long walks at night. It was rather peculiar behaviour for her because she was usually rather social.

Most of Leah's friends were very busy going out there new found beaus' saying they had to practice their nursing skills. Or they would be gossiping with each other about their plans for when they get to Hawaii.

Leah was a nervous wreck however, everything was happening so fast…Rafe leaving, her and Danny and the though of leaving for Hawaii. She was so overwhelmed with so many emotions she didn't know what to do with herself. She felt like she needed to spill her mind to someone, anybody, but the only people she felt that she could take to were hundreds of miles away. Evelyn was her only option that was close to her but lately she wasn't in the mood for talking.

One day all nurses were called into the office of their commanding Navy Officer. They all knew what they were going to be hearing.

Waiting outside the Officers office they were all so giddy and excited to be officially hearing the news. When they were called in the office they all gave each other enormous smiles.

They marched single file into the round office decorated with plaques, trophies, certificates and dull colours. There was an older looking man wearing a crisp navy uniform and a serious look on his face.

"At ease Ladies." he stated blankly with a thick southern drawl.

They relaxed their posture putting their hands behind their backs.

"Now what I'm going to tell you, you ladies have probably known for about week now, however to make it official, ladies your going to Pearl Harbor."

There was a moments silence as the girls took in the information.

"Excuse me sir, permission to speak?" asked Betty, breaking the silence.

"Granted."

"Sir, when do we leave?" she asked, you could tell she was trying to hold back her excitement.

"Well, sorry for the short notice but you're leaving tomorrow 0600h."

There was a slight gasp the detonated the room all the girls were looking at each other with a sheer look of surprise.

"Ah… well thank you sir, permission to be dismissed?" asked Betty

"Permission granted."

The girls walked out in an orderly fashion with small smirks on their faces, they were finally going to Hawaii!

Once they reached the front doors of the building they started screaming, laughing and running towards their house.

Out of breath but still laughing they reached the house.

"Ladies we have to pack _immediately!_" exclaimed Betty "How do they expect us to pack that must in one day? This is ridiculous!"

"Come on girls lets do this!" Barbara said grabbing Sandra and Betty by the wrists and dragging them upstairs to the bedroom.

Leah and Evelyn were standing in the hallway when Leah opened her mouth to say something to Evelyn but before she could even get a word out Evelyn blurted out:

"I better go get packed you know big day tomorrow." And she sped towards the bedroom.

With her mouth still open she looked she shook her head in disbelief.

"What is wrong with her?" she thought to herself.

Out of nowhere a random thought hit her.

"Could she and Rafe have been… no never I they were I would have known…" and she waved off the thought and walked up to her bedroom to pack in peace.

As she packed she tried to fit as many clothes and bathing suits she could possibly stuff into her tiny suit case.

"Oh no!" she snapped her head up

She had totally forgotten to go and talk to before she left tomorrow. She felt terrible, he must think she the worst person in the world for completely ignoring him. But now it was too late because she was leaving for Hawaii tomorrow and who knew when she was going to see him next? She made a silent vow to herself that the next time she saw him she was going to tell him _everything._

* * *

Danny Walker laid in his bunk staring up at the ceiling running a reel of different thoughts in his head.

He had wanted to see Leah for quite some time now just to check up with her and see how she's doing ever to talk maybe even talk to her about the train station. He could build up the courage yet and now it was too late because he was going to Pearl Harbor tomorrow, who knows when he would see her next? They've just been playing a big game of cat and mouse without getting anywhere with each other. He couldn't take it anymore, so he decided he was going to start new in Pearl Harbor.

"Let her go Walker, let her go." he sighed to himself and he rolled over and closed his eyes and drifted off into a light sleep.

* * *

In the morning when Leah woke up ti was very early in the morning the other girls and her jumped into the cab to take them to the train station where they would eventually meet the boat to take them to Hawaii. 

They were all excited; no one knew what knew things that they would encounter in Hawaii.


	8. Welcome to Hawaii

**Hello! Wow, I haven't written in LONG time, the one year anniversary of this story just flew by! Anyways I'm back with this story after a little bit of a hiatus. Hope you guys still like it**

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Chapter 8 

Welcome to Hawaii

The air smelled of sweet Hawaiian flowers and salty sea as Leah stepped off the gangplank and onto dry land for the first time in weeks. The warm Hawaiian breeze which blew through her hair was full of uncertainty of the new chapter of the life she was embarking on.

The journey to Hawaii was long, in which she spent taking long walks along he deck late at night. She had a spot directly under an old artillery gun. She was completely hidden from view which was good because she wasn't supposed to be there in the first place. On clear nights she would go out and lay there for hours thinking about how much she missed home. She would stare at the stars and wondered what Rafe was going right at that moment. It was good for her though, the salt water breeze helped clear her head and without all the distractions of everyday life she felt she was finally coming to a conclusion on what was really doing with her life.

There were many things to do while she was aboard the ship, always things to keep you occupied. That was a good thing for Leah because she never really had time to mope around all day feeling sorry for herself. Most of the days the girls and her would go down to A deck and tan on the large patio with most of the other nurses. They chatted idly all day usually talking about their favourite subject: Boys. There was always a new crew member who would be the new eye candy for the day. But then eventually they would all get bored and move on to a new fetching man aboard the ship.

Leah mingled with new people as much as she could; she felt that it was important to meet new people and take advantage of the new circumstances. She met some rather nice women on their journey, all from different backgrounds, but all in nursing for the same reason. Leah felt that she really connected with most of the girls there.

However, all and all it was a rather long, boring journey that she was happy it was over.

"Isn't this wonderful girls!" stated Betty "Hawaii is just so gorgeous!"

"So are the men!" added Barbara, responded to yet another ship full of men catcalling at them, blowing them all a kiss.

The group of girls doubled over in laughter as they walked towards the hospital to check in.

1 Day Earlier

* * *

Danny woke up with a start, sweat dripping down his neck drenching his thin white shirt.

He looked over at his watch.

"5:45am." He groaned slightly as he realized that he would have to wake up in another 15 minutes anyways. However, it was not like he got much sleep last night, most of the night he spent most of his nights tossing and turning, making it almost impossible for him to sleep.

He had experienced the same dream again last night, Rafe is standing over a dark mass, he couldn't exactly tell what it was because it was dark outside, suddenly Rafe turned around he was covered in blood. Rafe slowly walked towards him as if he was in some kind of trance but as he got closer he could see what he was hunched over. Leah was lying on the ground, lifeless; her eyes were opened but glazed over looking up to the sky in a lifeless gaze. There was a small trail of blood trailing from under her hair. As he looked up Rafe was directly in front of him, so close he could feel his breath on is face. "What did you do? What did you do to her Danny? She's dead! What have you done you've killed her!" Rafe screamed at him waving his bloody hands in his face.

He always woke up shortly after that, drenched in a cold sweat, what he experienced in these dreams was his worst fear in life, something he would rather die himself then ever experience again: the sight of Leah lying dead at his feet. It made him sick to his stomach to even think about it.

Danny lay in his bed until the bell on the boat tolled for everyone to get up and out on deck for flag raising.

They were told the day before that they would be reaching Hawaii the next day at any given time. They should be docking at around 11:00 am that day, and he couldn't wait to get off the boat. The stifling heat, cramped space, and limited privacy was started to get to him. He extremely disliked confined space, hence the reason why he wanted fly. Nothing beat flying high above open fields with nothing but endless blue around you. It was so free, so astounding.

The upper groaned under the weight of the entire ships crew as they raised the flag on the ship. The hot pacific sun had just poked its head over the horizon and began to cast millions of diamonds over the surface of the dancing water.

"_The most perfect shade of blue…_" murmured Danny as gazed longing into the ocean.

He remembered perfectly the last time that he looked into those perfect, endless pools of blue…

Back to the girls…

Once the girls had arrived to the hospital they were shown around by a girl who seemed to be in her mid-twenties, wearing thick, horn-rimmed glasses, with a thick set of curly dark brown hair.

The first things that Leah noticed was how clean and-white everything seemed to be. She has seen hospitals before, evidently, but they were not this immaculate. The hospital seemed like it was brand new, the sheets looked like they've never been slept in. Even the tools in the gleaming cabinet looked like they had just been unwrapped from their packages.

There was but one patient in the ward that they walked through, and even that wasn't a serious case. A man lying down, belly first, was on the bed with pretty bad sunburn on his back.

She could see Betty smiling to herself, no doubt wondering how he came to get that sunburn.

"Now as you can see ladies, we don't see that much action here, but we do get the occasional little incident such as Private Gray here." said simply stated giving his sunburn a small smack.

"We also now and again have to stitch someone up but nothing ever that serious. You know how is, don't you ladies, too many ego-filled soldiers, too much alcohol and too much time on their hands. Fights are bound to break out ever so often." said the other nurse Heather.

All the girls gave a little chuckle as they walked past him and into another long corridor filled with empty beds. The windows were open which aloud the sun to flow freely into the room and carried the scent of the ocean into the hospital.

They had toured the remaining areas of the hospital, meeting the other nurses on staff and the resident doctors.

However, looking at those doctors still sent a sharp pang in her heart. It had been weeks since the last time that she saw Robert Stewart, lying unconscious in a bloody heap on the pavement outside of Lulu's. She had no idea what happened to him after that night, he hadn't called nor made an effort to contact her in anyway. She had been so happy with him those weeks when they were together but now being away from him made her feel more free, and she liked that. She was just happy that he wasn't stationed anywhere near her at this moment. She didn't know what she was going to say if she ever ran into him again. Leah wasn't sure if she could handle that stress right now.

"Nurse McCawley! Do you understand what I just said?" asked the older nurse, snapping her out of her daydream.

"Oh, yes, yes I'm sorry." she apologies quickly, the heat rising up her cheeks.

"Well alright then." replied Heather. "As you probably are already aware we are receiving a new shipment of troops today-pilots, from New York if I recall correctly, get ready for these boys now ladies, pilots tend to be the rowdiest of our servicemen."

"_Pilots, from New York…_" mused Leah in her head. But as soon as the thought entered her mind she shook it away. "_I would have known if he was going to be here, it's probably just a coincidence, it can't be his unit, can it?"_

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Evelyn looking at her shaking her head slightly.

"Leah, Hun you okay? You look like you've seen the entire US army swimming in the ocean naked." stated Betty

"Sorry Betty that's not my fantasy." Leah laughed back.

"True, true…" sighed Betty

"Well Ladies, that concludes our tour here for today. I hope you're all ready to work tomorrow bright and early." stated Mary. "Heather here will gladly show you out so you can go settle in to your new house."

The hospital was quite close to their new home so all the girls opted to walk instead of take a cab. They decided that it would be nice to soak in the hot Hawaiian sun and get used to their new neighborhood.

* * *

Once the Danny had gotten all his luggage put together and found the rest of his squadron it was already past 1:00.

He took in a deep breathe as he inhaled the sweet scent of the island.

"Walker! Hurry Up!" called Billy ahead of him.

"Ya, I'm coming, I'm coming…"

He ran up with the rest to the guys as they were loading into the trucks to take them to their barracks, which will be their home for the duration of their time in Hawaii.

"I don't know about you all but tonight I'm going looking for some ladies, who's coming?" asked Billy casually as they were all squished together in the back of some rickety army truck.

"Common Billy we just got here don't you want to have some rest before you go torture some poor girl." stated Anthony with a laugh.

"Are you serious Tony? Now you see that is the difference between you and me, I like to play the field before I go and shack up with some girl. And I don't torture these girls their begging to dance with me!"

"Whatever you say, big Guy." said Anthony shaking his head.

"W-w-what's up with you D-Danny? Y-y-you've hardly s-s-said a w-word." stuttered out Red, with the rest of the truck abruptly turning their heads towards him.

"Ahh nothing guys, I'm just tired you know the usual." he said forcing a smile.

"It's not some girl you left behind is it?" questioned one of the guys.

"Yeah right, I wish." Danny tried to sound casual. "_You guys have no idea.._."

"Well you better shapeup soon, I spot some nurses at 12:00 high." smiled Billy nearly falling out of the back of truck trying to get a better look.

Because of all the scuttle of men trying to see out of the back of the truck he could hardly see a thing. He gave a quick look out of the back of the truck just for kicks, it was one of the worst decisions he made that day. There walking across road with a bunch of other nurse's was that same brown haired uniformed clad woman that tortured his dreams. He couldn't get a better look because they quickly turned the corner and she flew out of sight just as she came into it.

"Betty! Barbara!" yelled Billy out the back, but it was too late they were already gone.

"I didn't know they were even gunna be here too! How convenient." chatted Anthony with an amused look on his face.

"B-b-b-Betty d-d-didn't tell m-m-m-me she'd-d b-be h-h-here!" said Red struggled out almost out of breath with his eyes as wide as saucers.

"Calm down, Red old buddy, I'm sure we will see plenty more of them over the next couple of days…" said Billy patting Red on the shoulder with an extremely mischievous grin on his face.

"_Maybe it wasn't her, please not let it be her!"_ said Danny trying to convince himself unsuccessfully. He couldn't lie to himself he could spot the girl from mile away from, anywhere, he knew her perfectly.

He let out a loud sigh. Forgetting Leah was going to be a lot harder when she was always going to be within 5 mile radius of each other, they were bound to meet sooner or later.

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**Thanks for reading! I hope this chapter wasn't that dull. Please read and review as always! The more I get the faster I'll update!**


	9. Iris

**This is the newest chapter in this story. Hope you all like it! Please Review!**

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Settling into the new life in Hawaii was easier then anyone could have expected. The girls spent their days lounging around the station because there were no injured men to look after. When there was the occasional accident it only took a few minutes to clean it up and only one or two of the nurses required for the job. It was inevitable that there would be accidents among the soldiers stationed in Hawaii, there was only so much to do after all the daily duties were completed and their extra curricular activities usually included boxing. They had to stitch up a few brows every so often.

Sometimes they were relived early in the afternoon, so there was time to go to the beach. It was the most beautiful sight Leah had ever seen. She had been to the beach before when she was 8. Her family had taken the weekend to travel to the coast; it was the most fun that she had all summer. The water back home was never so blue; here in Hawaii you couldn't tell the difference between where the sky began and the ocean ended. The sand here was also perfectly smooth and white. Quite unlike the dirt brown, coarse sand she was used to, it was paradise. She loved swimming in the ocean when the surf was so strong she could barley hold her ground. Unlike her the others girls preferred sunbathing on the rocks flaunting their figures for all the men that were at the beach too. Showing off their military worked bodies while playing football in the sand or surfing not doubt.

Thinking back to the precious moments of her childhood made Leah even more homesick then she usually felt. She had heard from Rafe three times since he left to fight in England. Even though she cherished the very few letters she received from him, every time that she read one she felt that the scar over her heart was being ripped open every time she heard from him. She was so worried about him, in his letters he tried to reassure her that he was fine and everything was going to plan. He rarely mentioned how difficult it was for him, but she knew her brother well enough that he would never mention how he was truly feeling.

They had been living in Hawaii for two weeks now and the others girls, including Leah just itching to go spend a night out on the town.

"I'm just so sick and tired of staying around this old place! I need excitement! Dancing, men!" cried out Betty as she flopped onto the bed where all the girls were sitting one afternoon.

"I would love to go see the new picture that's showing downtown tonight…" suggested Evelyn

"There's a nice little bar on the beach that I heard a lot of the soldiers hang out at…"

"They just made a new museum downtown that I think would be just great!" suggested Sandra looking quite hopeful

"NO!" screamed all the girls at the Sandra, Martha throwing a pillow at her.

All the girls broke out into a fit of giggles throwing pillows at each other and jumping all over the beds.

"Ok! Ok!" squealed Leah just as Betty was going to smash a pillow into her face. "I surrender!"

All the girls stopped their play fighting but they were still giggling and breathing heavily.

"We all want to do something different right? So why don't we go out every night this week and so something different. C'mon it will be fun!" suggested Martha

"Why don't we go out for dinner tonight, I heard of a nice restaurant called Iris the other day when I was eavesdropping on some of the older nurses the other day." stated Barbara

"That sounds splendid! I'm tired of eating your food anyway." Betty smiled at Barbara

"Oh you'll pay for that one missy!" Barbara screamed as she pounced on her again as they all presumed their pillow fight.

* * *

"Can we please do something other then sitting around these barracks? Where're in Hawaii for peats sake!" called down Anthony from his top bunk in their barracks.

The boys were not doing much better then the girls in the entertainment department in recent weeks. They simply did not have the time nor the energy after all their duties during the day to go out at night. Even though they knew that the girls were in Hawaii, most likely ready and willing to go out with them they didn't know where they were living for where to find them. And none of them had the guts to show up at the hospital during the day, even against Billy better judgment who decided it would be a good idea to intentionally beating up Red so they would have a reason to all show up at the hospital.

"I agree I think I'm going to die in here, Billy's stuff smells so bad I'd rather sleep in a junkyard." said Guz holding his nose

"Hey! I heard that!" yelled Billy from the other side of the room

"Good!" shouted Guz back at him

"Finally an agreement of fun, I was getting worried that all you guys were becoming dull!" said Billy as he jumped down from his bed and started walking over to the cluster of men who were congregated in the middle of the barracks. "Let's all head out to this fun little place that I found out the other day called…"

"Absolutely not! The last time that we went to "a fun little place" that you wanted to go to…well I'd rather not think about it actually." stated Tony with look of pure horror

"Hey! I was sure those were real girls how was I supposed to know they weren't!" said Billy pitifully defending himself. "Anywho this place is legitimate, I've been there before its called Isla or Ira or something like that, and we can just walk around tonight and try to find it."

"It will all give us something fun to do! Hell maybe we'll even see the girls. Give Mr. All I like to Do All Day Is Brood in My Bed and Fix Airplanes something different to do." stated Billy nodding towards the empty bed to the right of his

"Where is ol' Danny boy anyways?"

"Are you stupid? Didn't you hear what I just said? If he isn't in his bed then he's…"

"Fixing airplanes, yeah, yeah I heard you."

"Wait a second guys… I have an idea." smirked Billy looking around the room

* * *

Music from bars and restaurants were spilling out onto the streets of downtown Oahu when the group of nurses walked down the street towards the restaurant. The sky was streaked scarlet, orange, yellow and violet as the tangerine sun began to slip beneath the Hawaiian surf to rise again across the sea. There was a slight breeze bringing all the smells of Hawaii together in one place. There wasn't a cloud in the sky as they walked along laughing and chatting together.

"Isn't it just marvelous? I don't know how I'm going to return to my home town when we get back. It just won't be the same."sighed Betty as they walked along the sidewalk which was bustling with all different kinds of people.

"I'm in the same boat too. This is all so different then anything I have ever experienced in my entire life!"

After getting lost a fair amount of time on their way they finally stumbled upon the tiny restaurant, Iris, the girls walked into the cozy place which was located on the main road. They requested a table in which they could look out the large bay window onto the street, just in case some gorgeous servicemen walked by.

"This was a great idea girls, I haven't had this much fun since we got here!" said Leah taking another sip of her beer. "You guys are so much fun!"

"I agree you too toots, we need to get out more often, and there is just way too much fun to be had out here!" Barbara agreed with Leah

"To friendship, Hawaii, boys and alcohol!" Betty laughed raising her wine glass in a toast.

"Ooo and to those flyboys walking down the road." stated Martha raising her glass yet again and nodding out the window

Every girl at the table heads flew out the window as a group of pilots dressed to the nines slowly made there way down the street towards them.

They were all making there ooo's and ahh's as a thought hit Leah straight in the chest like a ton of bricks slamming into her body from a thousand feet up.

In the middle of the row of men one man in particular caught her eye. Towering over the rest of the group with dark hair and a small smirk pulling at the corner of his lips, he was gorgeous she thought to herself.

"Oh my sweet Jesus!" cried Barbara "Isn't that Billy and Anthony? I had no idea that they were in town!"

"And Red! This night is turning out better then I have ever expected! Hey Leah isn't that Danny looking rather stunning might I add?" Betty squealed holding onto to Leah's arm

She couldn't help it; it was the only thing that came to mind at the time. She immediately went rigid in her chair and slipped out of it to hide underneath the table.

"Leah McCawley what in the name do you think you're doing?" Evelyn asked her

"Have they seen us? Are they coming over? Please tell me they're not coming over here!" begged Leah from underneath the table

"You're acting like a 5 year old get out from under there!"

"I'm sorry I can't! I have to leave immediately! If they come in please, please do me a huge favour and tell them that I was never here!" She then sprinted from underneath the table on her hands and knees towards the back door of the restaurant, ignoring the looks she was receiving from all the other people in room.

"I can't believe she just did that." said Evelyn gawking at the back door in which Leah had just exited with speed like nothing she had ever seen before

"That girl surprises me everyday with some of the things that she does…" said Sandra

Just as Sandra ended her sentence the group of boys walked into the restaurant signaled by a bell in the doorway.

"Hello ladies! The fun has officially arrived into your evening." smiled Billy winking at them

"We've been wondering when we were going to bump into you gals!" added Anthony

"It's good to see you boys too, I thought I was going to wither away with out any male interactions!" said Betty "Heya Red." she added shyly

"Hey there B-betty." said Red turning a shade of scarlet which made is own hair colour look brown.

"Danny. Haven't seen you in a while...how are you doing?" asked Evelyn

"Can't really complain." he replied dully

"If you girls are done here why don't you come out with us?"

Betty was looking at Danny at that moment and saw his eyes darting around the table like he was chasing after a fly. She couldn't help but laugh to herself,_ "poor guy! If only he knew!"_ she thought to herself.

"We would love to come out with you guys! We've all been waiting for an opportunity to get out on the town anyways."

"Kiss me if I'm wrong but aren't we missing a person from this little hen party?" asked Billy

"Yeah we are Leah's back at the house, she was feeling quite ill this afternoon, decided to sit this one out."

"Wait a second isn't that her running across the road?" asked Anthony

Once again they all darted their eyes across the window to see Leah running like a madman, hair flying behind her trying to go as fast as the tightness of her dress would allow. She wasn't even looking where she was going almost being run over by numerous cars. Everybody couldn't help but laugh when her heel broke and she stumbled, only barley catching herself from smashing head first into the side walk.

" Betty?" questioned Billy "If Leah was at home this afternoon then why dose it look like she's running _away_ from this restaurant?

All the girls at the table gave a nervous laugh.

* * *

**Thanks for reading more soon to come! Please, please review! Thanks**

**AR**


	10. Revelation

**Hello! Thanks for all the great reviews you guys are awesome!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything**

* * *

" No, no that's not her, look she's way too tall, hair too short, right ladies?, it can't be her." said Betty a hint of desperation in her voice that didn't go unnoticed.

"_If that's not her, why is some stranger wearing the same bracelet that Rafe gave her on her 18__th__ birthday?"_ Danny thought to himself still looking after her as she tried unsuccessfully to run away with stealth. Furrowing his brow he sighed to himself, _Why is she running away?_

As if reading his mind Evelyn out her hand on his arm as if to reassure him that everything was going to be ok. She was always good at judging people's emotions.

"Forget it! Let's get out of here, tonight will be a night to remember!" Billy yelled pulling Barbara from her chair

"And let me ladies." said Anthony "I'll get the check."

With that the entire group got up from the small table arm and arm out and into the street.

* * *

Hair a mess, red faced and out of breath Leah McCawley finally reached their modest home. Slumping herself against wall in the front foyer of the house she closed her eyes and took long, slow deep breaths. She was warned before hand that there was a high possibility that Danny and his unit were going to be here, but seeing him walking down the road like that for the first time in how many weeks was what made her realize the reason she was hiding from him in the first place, she had known it forever, she had known it in Tennessee, she had known it in New York and by God she knew it now, she loved him, everything about _him._ The way he walked, they way his hair was never even close to tidy, his long and lean muscles always hidden beneath a perfect uniform. But just as suddenly as this emotion hit her, she had a grand realization… _"What am I doing running away from him?"_

"He clearly saw me acting like a child running away on my hands and knees, which certainly is not helping my case in Operation Talk to Danny. I can't believe I just did that…"

As she was talking to herself in the front steps of her home the post man came up to her front door to give them their daily batch of mail.

"Here you go Miss, a large bundle for you today…I'm sure you've been waiting for this letter for some time too." he winked at her as he handed her rather abnormally large bundle of mail for the day.

She knew what it was as soon as she saw the letter. The letter looked like it was a hundred years old filled with postage stamps and marks, smeared with dirt and some of the corners were slightly ripped.

It had been a long time since she had heard from her brother, too long for her liking. It was a perfect time to read the letter, everyone was out, the sun had finally slipped from the horizon, it was one of the most glorious nights she had experienced since she was in Hawaii.

Before she read the letter she decided to make herself a cup of tea to ease her recently ruffled nerves due to all the new emotions that had suddenly wormed there way into her body.

Waiting for the water to boil, she looked out the window, their home backed onto a wonderful green lawn filled with wildflowers which were all different colours of the rainbow, from where she stood she could hear the waves crashing onto the beach which is so close she would have been able to see it if it weren't for the darkness surrounding their tiny home.

She prepared her tea whistling silently to herself; her mood had improved significantly in the last little while she couldn't help it.

She walked over to the window sill which faced the back lawn and turned on the lamp just to side of her. Snuggling herself deep into the heap of woolen blankets on the couch and taking a sip of her tea she finally decided to open letter laying beside her on the coffee table.

"Yeah these blankets were a bad idea…" she sighed to herself as she threw the blankets off of herself and onto the floor. It was hot enough already why had she decided to do that she had no idea. "I guess it's just been a day full of bad decisions" she laughed to herself.

Chuckling and contorting her body so she could reach the letter, she finally felt the envelope in her hand. She liked to take her time reading the letters she got from Rafe, they came on such a rare occasion that she cherished every second that she read the letters; she always tried to make each time she read one special to her.

She looked at the date written on the outside corner of the letter where the return information was located, November…

"That's odd she thought to herself… he never writes letters that close to one another." she mused to herself.

Dismissing the fact she turned the envelope over and carefully ripped it open to reveal the letter concealed inside.

With a gentle touch she lovingly pulled out the letter. It looked exactly the same on the outside as any other letter she had received from him.

"Good." she thought, "Regularity is good because God knows the unnatural things he has to face over there…"

She finally started to read the carefully written words written on the yellowing paper.

_My Dearest Love,_

"My Dearest Love?" she said astonishingly "What in the name…" she read on her curiosity getting the best of her.

_My Dearest Love,_

_I couldn't bear the thought of not writing to you for another week. I miss you to no end. I have seen some beautiful things while I've been here in England but nothing as beautiful as you my darling .Every time I go to sleep I try to conjure up my favourite memory of you and memorize every little detail from it, until I get it perfect. I try to imagine what I'm going to say to you, to what we are going to say to everyone when I return home, to feel you in my arms seems so far away but I know to see you once again is the best thing I've ever had to wait for in my entire life._

_My darling Evelyn, the day I see you again is the day my life will forever be complete._

_With all my love,_

_Rafe_

"Oh my God!" gasped Leah and quickly shot from the couch she was laying on.

* * *

The music in the club was so loud you could barley hear yourself think yet alone try to have a conversation with anyone else. Smoke from hundreds of cigarettes made your eyes water and choked you. It was no were near the clubs that they went to in New York. He wasn't having any fun, how would you if you had been forced to come against your will?

Danny Walker took the final sig left in his beer and got up from the cramped, tiny table where he was the only one sitting. Everyone else was up dancing, or God knows where, it was his perfect opportunity to escape. Moving as quickly yet inconspicuously as he could he made a run for the door. Just as the fresh air began to hit his lips and his fingers began to slip around the handle to push the door all the way open, he heard an almost animalistic cry from behind him.

"WE GOTTA RUNNER!!"

Just as fast as he almost left he felt many hands forcing him back into the club.

Groaning slightly Danny shot a look of cruelty to all his friends holding him back.

"Don't make us use drastic measures again Danny, it would be much better for all of us." said Anthony, voice straining against the physical effort of trying to pull Danny back to the table.

This afternoon while Danny was fixing an airplane which propeller was slightly broken (which needed to be fixed immediately for the sake for the pilots safety) he was ambushed by his so called friends. They came up from behind him, blindfolded and gagged him and tied his arms behind his back. Too surprised to even try to defend himself, he was easily maneuvered onto the ground in which his feet were bound together.

"Sorry Danny, it's for the best." they kept on telling him

Fruitlessly trying to wiggle himself free he finally gave in to his kidnapping. His friends threw him onto some sort of apparatus to carry him about.

"MMMMMMM!!MHMHMHMHMHMH!!" was all that came out when he yelled to his friends inside his head he was screaming "Did you guys just throw me on an f'ing stretcher?! What the fck is going on? Where are you taking me?"

"Calm down Danny we'll let you go as soon as we sort this issue out." said Billy from somewhere to his right.

After a short time of walking, he was finally pulled off the stretcher and onto a cold surface. They re-bounded him to what seemed like a cold metal pole and started to take off the blindfold which shielded his eyes.

"Ok buddy where going to un- blindfold you but you must promise to just calm down and listen to us." said Billy "It's for your own good." all five of them said in unison.

When his blindfold slipped off his face he found that he wasn't in some secret underground bunker like he assumed, but just simply chained to his bed in the barracks. Red came along shortly after that and took the gag out of his mouth.

"Welcome the intervention of Captain Daniel Walker!"

"Are you guys serious?" he gaped open mouthed at his friends who where surrounding him in something like a make shift play court.

"Due to the recent events where we, your good friends, have noticed that well Danny where have you been?"

"Yeah ever since we got to Hawaii you've been in the worst moods! You just no fun anymore! Ever. We know that you've never been quite the little social butterfly…"

"Quite unlike me" Billy interjected

"Y-your just n-not the same!" Red added

"Guys this is none of your business! Now let me go!" he growled at them

"Sorry you're not going anywhere big guy."

"Let's just get this over with I have better things to do." he replied in a huff

"Exactly Danny, what other things do you have to do? Fix airplanes? That's not so important right now; you don't have to do it in your spare time." Anthony explained to him.

Suddenly it hit Danny, what had he been doing these past few weeks. Sulking around like a five year old who got denied a second piece of cake for dessert, it was embarrassing for him to be acting like this; he's a Captain for peats sake! His friends were right, this was exactly what he needed, and he had to let everything out._ Well maybe not everything…_

"You guys just have no idea the pressure that I've had on me since Rafe left… there's some things that I have to do, someone I've had to look after. I've been doing a horrible job of it too and now I don't know what to do with myself." he quickly but clearly said so he wouldn't have to repeat himself.

Silence pressed on the group, like a thousand pounds on the back of an ant.

Billy broke the silence first by firstly staring at Danny, then his guys going as wide as saucers.

"I get it…I understand everything now…" as he smiled at everyone

"That would be a first." mumbled Anthony under his breath

"Hey! I heard that!" Billy spat at Anthony "Anyway… Walker I finally understand what's going on in that head of yours…."

Danny laughed at him, "Ok Doctor, what's your diagnosis?"

"You love her, always have! You love Leah McCawley and now you don't know what to do! Ha! I always thought you did!"

"Uhh, you guys are crazy! I don't l-love Leah, ok?" he tried to be cool about, but he couldn't hide it.

"Oh man! This is great! Finally that's what's been bugging you are in love with your best friend's kid sister!" Anthony laughed at Danny.

Everyone in the room (except for Danny) was howling with laughter. Jumping all over him and teasing him. They were the ones now acting like a bunch of kids. It was never his intentions to let people know his true feelings it made him more vulnerable, weaker. But know they knew and there was nothing he could be about it.

He let out a gigantic groan.

"Common Guys, Danny here needs a drink!" someone yelled as they untied him

* * *

"And that's how I ended up here." Danny finished telling his story to Evelyn, who had been listening intently the entire time.

"And…" he asked quietly

"And what?"

"Do you love her?" she asked face as straight as it could be

"I don't know, I…I just have no idea!" he said frustrated "It doesn't really help my case when she's running away from me does it?"

"To be honest Danny I don't know why she did that. But you are going to have to make the first move; you know how she can get sometimes."

"Yeah I know, it's just I haven't talked to her since the train station, and that was just plain weird what happened there… I just think I've let it go on too long that I won't be able to talk to her without being forced too."

"I'm sure you'll think of something." she said giving him a genuine smile "Just do it as soon as you feel you can."

They both got up at the same time and Evelyn gave him a hug.

"Good Luck Danny." were her parting words "I need to be getting home."

* * *

Evelyn was tired when she opened the door to her bedroom. It had been a long day and all she could think of was getting into her nice, comfortable bed. It was dark in her room and she couldn't be bothered to turn on the lights.

"Evelyn, I think there's something you have to explain to me…"

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed this one. I'll update as soon as I can! Happy Reviewing!**


	11. On a Warm Summer Night

Hello! This is a long one so hope you enjoy! Feedback of any kind would be much, much appreciated!Thank you all so much for reviewing

* * *

Taking a sharp intake of breath Evelyn spun around on the spot to face Leah who was sitting cross legged on her bed.

"Leah! You scared me half to death what's going on? Is everything ok?" she asked quickly coming to her bedside and sat down beside her.

"I think the real question is Evelyn, what is this?" Leah pulled the opened letter off from the bedspread and gently placed it in her lap.

Silently she grabbed the letter. Glancing at the letter it was obvious she knew who it was from. Leah gave her a nod of approval before she flipped over the letter to open the already torn seal.

Leah was surprised at how composed Evelyn was while reading the letter. No tears came to her eyes as she watched her eyes scan over the words she knew were probably tearing her up inside.

"We wanted to keep it a secret… now that I think of it I don't know why we did that…"

There was a long silence after that. Leah didn't want to e the first one to break the silence whereas Evelyn didn't know what to say.

However, after a while Evelyn broke their silence.

"It all started back in New York, back when we were still doing medical examinations…"

It was like the emotional damn in her brain was finally released. The story of their relationship over the months was told in such vivid detail, such loving description that it was like Leah wasn't there anymore. Her eyes were swimming in their memories together: late night walks, moonlit boat rides, silent nights, blissful afternoons, peaceful mornings…

It was like for one moment nothing else in her world existed, nothing but the two of them together.

And for one for one moment and one moment only Leah couldn't help but feel the ache of jealousy twisting through her body. She wished she could have felt the intensity of the passion for loving someone.

"I thought my life had changed the day I starting nursing, but looking back my life was just beginning the day I met Rafe."

At that moment both of them started to cry: cry for missing Rafe, for sadness, for happiness, just for the sake of crying. It was like now, after reliving herself of this secret that Evelyn could finally be herself after a long time of hibernation.

Lying in bed together like two twelve year old girls at their first sleepover, Leah and Evelyn stayed up half the night talking. Even when the other girls came home at 3:30am did they pretend to be asleep so they wouldn't be interrupted.

"Can you really say that you honestly had no idea?" Evelyn questioned.

"I really had no idea; you two did an astounding job of being secretive."

"I really miss him." whispered Evelyn as she rolled over so her and Leah were face to face.

"I miss him too…but I'm sure if you had to live with some of the things I had to put up with from him growing up you wouldn't miss him that much." Leah laughed

"I'm sure I still would, I wish I could have spent as much time with him as you did." she mused. "I would still love him no matter what."

Their conversation had died sown for a few minutes when Leah suddenly had a question burning to get out.

"Evelyn…hey Ev!" she nudged her, "you still awake?"

"Um-hum."

"Can I ask you a question real quick?" she asked seriously

"Um-hum.", came a tried response from beside her

"When was the first time that you realized that you were in love?"

Evelyn was quite astute after that question. Rolling over she spoke quite clearly and straightforward.

"It's like something you have never felt before, something that you don't ever want to stop feeling. It's like for any moment you're away from each other you cease to exist and when you are together, everything else ceases to exist. It's just you two left in the entire world. Everything is perfect- b"

Leah tried to cut in but Evelyn just spoke over top of her.

"But, he annoys you to no end, you can't stand some of his quirky habits, he makes you cry, he makes you angry. Yet all those things that you madden you to no end are the things that you miss the most once they're gone."

After that sentence Leah knew that their conversation had turned to something much different.

"You have to realize that once you've found someone truly good for you, someone that makes your knees weak when you hear his voice, loose your breath when he looks at you or makes you run away from a restaurant…you have got to keep it and hold onto it tight, because you never know what might have to tear you apart. Do you understand me? You have to forget everything else in your life and go after the one thing that deep down you feel is the one thing that matters. The one thing that you feel is the reason you're alive. You take it and you hold onto it Leah. Don't let it slip through your fingers, especially now, not during these times."

They were both silent for awhile as they let the information sink into her.

"I... I…I have to go!" Leah said animatedly as she hopped from her bed and ran out of the room.

Evelyn was so shocked she didn't know what to do. She just let herself lie back in her soft bed. Eventually as smile began to spread across her face as she realized what was happening.

* * *

Before she knew it Leah McCawley was running out of her house, still tying up her housecoat and putting on her slippers.

"Leah McCawley! Where in God's green earth do you think you're heading out at this time of night, with your house coat on?" Sandra screamed at her through the window.

At this point Leah was already in the middle of the street.

"I don't know what I'm doing! I think I'm going crazy!" she laughed in an almost fanatic tone.

"You get back here this instant! You're probably going to catch a cold!"

"Don't worry about me! This is the best thing that's ever happened to me!"

With that she ran down the road until she vanished into the dark.

The run to the military barracks was a lot farther then she had anticipated. Once arriving at the gates to the barracks she was disheveled, sweaty and red but at that point she didn't care. She had come too far to give up now. On the way over the thought of rejection had passed through her mind more than once. What if she was about to lay her heart out on the tale for him only for him to rip it to shreds? Even if that were to be the case at least she would have some closure to this chapter of her life and be able to move on, even if it would cause her pain.

Slipping through the gates, she stealthily walked to his barracks. With every footstep she could feel her heart beating quicker and quicker and her breath speeding up. This was it the moment she had been waiting for forever. Somehow she instinctively knew what to do.

Picking up a pebble off the ground she fiddled it between her fingers before finally throwing at the window, which she was sure his bed lay next to.

She waited patiently after she threw the second rock. And eventually the window began to slowly open. Time began to move in slow motion as a dark head began to peer out the window.

"Danny! It's me Leah! I need to speak with you!" she yelled completely forgetting the complex speech she had practiced for so long, waiting for this moment.

"Danny? No, it's me Tony. Leah what are you doing out here? Is everything alright?"

This was something that she didn't prepare for and immediately felt her confidence dissolve as if it was flowing out of her uncontrollably.

"Yes everything's fine. But I really need to speak with him; can you please get him for me?"

"You know I would babe, but he's not here, just noticed his bed was empty." he said with a twinge of regret in his voice.

She could physically feel her heart sink as the feeling of disappointment overwhelmed her.

"I -, uh… where is he?!" she said with a little more force then she needed.

"Are you sure everything's ok? I mean I'm sure I could help with whatever you need."

"I could help too!" said Billy as he joined Tony out the window. "He left 'bout half an hour ago. Said he wasn't sure if he'd be back tonight. Betcha it was something mighty important though, seemed pretty anxious."

"Thanks guys, but I need to do this on my own."

Leah was disappointed but certainly not dejected. She was determined to continue with what she started tonight.

Without another word she turned and walked back out to the front of the base, leaving a very bewildered Tony and Billy behind her.

* * *

Danny Walker was running like a madman down a dark residential street. He knew exactly where he was doing and exactly where he was going. After his conversation with Evelyn that night he decided he had been waiting too long for something he could no longer wait for. He needed to tell her exactly hoe he felt, how much he loved her and that he wanted to fix their relationship which seemed to be falling apart by the day. He had woken up in the middle of the night and knew that it was now or never and this revelation is what led him to be running around town at 4 o'clock in the morning.

He couldn't help but laugh, why had he waited so long to do something?

Without hesitation he waltzed up to the doorway. He was about to knock on the door to the house when another idea hit him.

"_Why wake up everyone in the house? This should just be between me and her."_

With this strike of brilliance and inspiration he walked around to the side of the house and started to climb the drain pipe which lead to the window of Leah McCawley's bedroom.

Whether it was the adrenaline coursing through his veins, the sheer stupidity of the stunt or the blissful numbness his entire body was feeling right at this moment he was able to swiftly climb the drain pipe with ease.

Awkwardly climbing through her window he loudly called out her name while trying to get his leg over the sill.

"Leah!"

Between his enthusiastic yell and the dexterity it requires to climb up to a window, he tripped and tumbled out of the window in a loud, dark mass at the bottom of the window.

It was not quite the "knight in shining armour" entrance he wanted to make.

"What in heavens name!" screamed the dark figure practically hitting the roof with fright.

Yelling and ejecting herself from the bed she grabbed a pillow and began whacking Danny all over his body.

"Get out of my house! Thief! Thief! Get out!"

"Stop! Leah, Stop! It's me Danny! STOP!"

"Danny? What on earth are you doing here?" questioned Evelyn who was sleeping in Leah's bed.

"Evelyn? Why are _you_ in here? Where's Leah?"

"She left. I don't know what time but she was heading somewhere with quite the ambition."

Dumfounded and still on the floor, Danny just stared at Evelyn like he hadn't just heard a word she said.

After some time he finally managed to say something. "She just… got up and left? Just like that?"

"Just like that." Evelyn reinforced.

"Well then, sorry there Ev, I'm just going to leave with the shred of pride and head out then." he said while getting up and dusting himself off.

"Maybe it would be a better idea if you used the front door this time." Evelyn laughed as she opened the door which lead into the hallway.

"Right…sorry about that, I just didn't wanna wake everyone else up." he simply stated with an awkward laugh. Good thing it was still dark for he could feel his ears turning red.

Danny quietly walked down the hallway and down the stairs so he could finally have the sleep his body had been deprived of for so long.

* * *

Slowing her jog down to a brisk walk as she rounded the corner towards her house, Leah began to cultivate another plan in her mind. A plan that intended on acting upon as soon as possible. She was so deep in thought she did not see around the corner a tall, dark figure rounding the corner at the same time, also quite deep in thought.

"Oh my!" she gasped as the two of them collided sending Leah crashing to the ground.

"I'm so sorry miss, didn't expect anybody to be walking around at this time of n-"Danny was suddenly speechless as soon as he realized who he had just walked into. Both persons were unprepared for this. All their courage had left them once the first opportunities were extinguished.

"Leah! I'm sorry. I was just, I was just…"

"About to help me up?" she interjected, giving him a smile.

"Yeah. That's exactly it." he replied grabbing her extended hand and gingerly pulling her to her feet.

It was evident by both of their behaviours and directions in which they were heading from where they were tonight and their probable reason for doing so. Fate had finally pulled them together in an uncomplicated, simplified scenario in which there was no other out but through. There was not going to be another perfect opportunity like this one was now.

"I want to know if you would like to, you know, maybe come out with me sometime, if you like. You know… when you have some free time." Danny said quickly before blurting out. "Just as friends!"

"_You coward Walker. You couldn't just tell her could you."_ Danny chastised himself for adding on that last sentence.

Leah let out a long sigh. "_Finally!"_ she thought.

"Of course Danny. I'd be willing to go out with you anytime." She tried to sound like everything was normal and that this wasn't a big deal. When on the inside she was screaming for joy. "I've missed you a lot. I haven't seen you around much, we've just sorta stopped talking…I really have missed having you around." She finished stepping closer to him as she gave him a small smile.

Returning her smile Danny spoke, "I just haven't been the same without you being around. The general levels of fun just sorta drastically decreased. I mean who else am I going to make fun of all the time right?" he laughed, giving her a little prod with his elbow.

"_Can anybody be anymore prefect?"_ Leah questioned herself as she looked at him sweetly. _"If he doesn't stop talking…"_

Leah couldn't restrain herself any longer. She threw herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his muscular chest. At first he was in shock but after a mere moment their bodies moulded to each other like that's where they were meant to be.

Both of them knew that from that moment on everything was going to change.

* * *

Any thoughts? What do you guys want to happen? Give your input. PLease Review!


	12. Fun in the Sun

Wow! So this is basically the longest update wait ever. But finally here is an additional chapter!

disclaimer: all in good fun. none of this belongs to me.

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As the hot, salt twined wind blew over Leah's face all the problems in the world seemed to just fade away. This is what life should be like, all the time. Care free, worry free, just nothing but watching the incoming swells crash against the sand. In the recent week she had found the perfect spot, untouched by human existence, nothing but the connection between the sky and the sea. She loved the feeling of her fingers and toes squishing through the wet, rough sand, the hot sun beating down on her body.

Once she had found this spot she found it hard to ever leave. She tried to come here whenever she had a spare moment. It was a natural alcove; a spot only reached by great physical means. She had to climb over rough volcanic rock and through tough hidden pools of water. But once the final destination was reached, it was all worth it. When the never ending sea touched the horizon it created a burst of sunlight so powerful and vibrant, the water seemed to twinkle with the likes diamonds. In this spot time stopped, nothing existed, everything was perfect.

This particular afternoon was in need of well deserved rest and relaxation. For the first time in a couple of weeks the hospital had been rather busy. Apparently, the sailors in their innate boredom had resorted to inter battalion boxing matches, and there was a fair share of injuries coming in. Just today alone Leah had to stitch up 4 head wounds, set 2 broken hands,5 broken wrists and look after a poor chap with a severe concussion. Not to mention to administer the antibiotics to the Venereal Disease ward which was slowly filling up as their weeks in Hawaii progressed, obviously again as a result of utter boredom in their duties.

It was nice to have something to do though and not just sitting around in the hospital with all the other Nurses chatting and fanning themselves.

She liked to spend the time alone reading the recent letters from Rafe or her parents, but mainly to write letters herself. She had received two letters in the mail that morning and she was most anxious to read about the news. One was from her brother and the next was from her parents, she hadn't heard from them in weeks. Mind you she hadn't made the effort to write them either.

She opened her eyes and was momentarily blinded from the intensity of the sun but reached around to grab her plain tote beach bag to get the letters she had stored in there this morning. Sitting up on her elbows she first placed her sunglasses back on her face than gently opened Rafe's letter. She thought it would be best to read his first than deal with her parents second. The letter started out just like it usually did and again it was wildly out of date.

_Leah,_

_I hope everything is going ok back in Hawaii and that you guys aren't having too much fun without me, though I'm starting to meet new people here. I had a couple of drinks with a few guys from the RAF last night, the limey's are actually not that bad once you get to know them! Ha-ha! Got a letter from Mom and Dad a little while back, they seem worried. I assume that you'll be receiving a letter from them shortly so it would be great if you would tell them that I'm fine. I know that they will listen to their only "responsible" child. _

_Evelyn wrote me saying how you know everything now. I hope you are not too mad and understand why we both wanted to keep our relationship a secret. But now that you know, I want to tell you how much I love her! She is such an amazing woman and it is killing me not to be able to talk about her around anyone over here in England. I just wish that this is all over soon so I can come over to Hawaii and show you all a good time! I know it's not the same without me and that you are probably all as bored as heck. Make sure that you say hey to all the girls for me, especially Eve. Tell Danny to keep up on his promise (don't worry he'll know what that means.)Keep things up stateside sis!_

_Love Rafe._

This is why she loved her brother; short, sweet and to the point. Nothing to sappy but she never felt any less cared about. That was one of the things she missed most about him, there was bluntness in his attitude which she had rarely encountered. She was comforted in his words and for a moment it almost seemed that he was sitting right beside her laughing in the same old way. It was strange to think that she needed these reminders to remember what he looked like. It had been so long that she couldn't just conjure up an image in her head like she used to be able to.

That revelation made her sadder than she could have possibly imagined and suddenly tears sprang to her eyes as she folded the letter back up into the envelope.

"Why does everything have to be so hard!" she half cried to herself and slumped back down into the sand.

This was the first time that her secret spot had failed to heal the wounds that were slowly growing more deep. All the struggles and hard work that she had been forced to deal with in the past months all seemed to weigh down at her in that one moment. She closed her eyes and forced herself to clear her mind of all the whirlwind images spinning in her mind, all going a hundred miles an hour.

She was surprised how easy it was for her to do this when she only focused on one specific image...

* * *

_She was suffocating, drowning, she couldn't get to the surface, she was gasping for breath, and water was filling her lungs. She could feel herself dying as she sun beneath the crystalline pacific waters, gazing into the sunlight._

She jolted awake and found that she was in fact submerged under water.

She must have been asleep for much longer than she thought because the tide was already almost at its peak and the sun was sitting quite low in the sky casting a deep, golden glow across the sand. Her mouth and eyes burned with the salt water which had managed to work its way in there during her nap.

Dragging herself out of the water, she waited for a few moments to catch her breath on the rock before she decided to grab her things and walk home. She had plans for tonight and needed the optimum amount of time to prepare herself.

Well at least she wanted to leave right away, the only problem that all her belongings were gone. She looked everywhere: under rocks, buried in the sands, hidden in the lichen and other beach shrubbery. But they were nowhere to be found. No tote, no towel, no clothes.

"Just a topper to the perfect day!" she sighed

Just then out of the corner of her eye she saw floating in the distance, her brown tote bag floating some 100 meters off of shore. She didn't think twice before wading into the water and swimming out to retrieve it. She thought herself as an accomplished swimmer, used to spending hours on end in the swimming hole located in her parent's backfield.

She only reached about 50 meters out before the realized how far away the bag actually was. Swimming in her backyard waterhole looked a lot different to her now. Her breath was laboured and she could feel her arms and legs getting heavier and heavier by the second.

It didn't take long for her to realize that this was a bad idea. The farther she swam out the larger and more ferocious the waves got and the even more difficult it became to even try to swim anymore, he arms and legs were like lead.

Sheer panic gripped her as she began gasp for air and paw at the water to do anything that she could to keep her head above water. Suddenly her dream had become a reality.

It could have been hours before she felt the strong arms grab underneath her and begin to pull her back towards shore. Everything was a blur of colour: yellows, red, blues and greens as she could feel her body finally scrape against the rough sand.

She began coughing uncontrollably while lying on her back, trying to clear her lungs of all the water. It was a few moments before she could open her eyes and even longer for them to rid themselves if the salt that blurred her vision.

There was not much she could have done to prepare her for what she saw next.

The dark, shaggy brown hair was dripping salt water down the toned, tanned muscles of the man who had his hands cradling her weak body. Once those deep, brown eyes met hers his hands immediately went to stroking her hair away from her face.

"That was quite the ordeal there. Are you alright?" he laughed at her

For the first time she was able to see her knight in shining armour for the first time in clear light.

"Danny?" she gasped, her voice scratchy from all the inhalation of salt water.

He smiled back at her.

"Of course it was, who else could it possibly be?" she mused to herself returning his smile and still holding his gaze. When she referred to this as her 'private' spot, there was only one other person who knew about it too. They had found it together while taking a walk along the beach. And it was the most beautiful spot in the world that they couldn't help but stay there the entire day much to Leah's roommate's dismay on her late arrival home, not to mention her failure to disclose where she was going to be.

Since there chance meeting in the middle of the night one week ago, Danny and Leah had been practically inseparable. The only time when they were not together was during the day when their separate duties kept them on different ends of the city. Other than that they would see each other every night, going to the movies, walking on the beach or having ice cream on the pier.

They decided to keep their budding relationship secret from everyone else, in order for them to decide what they truly wanted themselves. They were taking things slow, taking the time to relearn how to be friends again. They had gone so long without speaking and avoiding each other that they had almost forgotten what it was like just to be in each other's company. Almost. She was actually surprised how quickly they were able to meld back into their old habits. It seemed natural when they went out for ice cream two nights ago that she got chocolate and he got vanilla only for them to eat each others, something that they had been doing since she was eight and he was ten. They always forgot that they liked the other ones flavour much more.

Something told her that the time that they promised that they would spend just being friends again was not going to last as long as they thought. That line in their relationship had been crossed too many times to just simply go back to the friendship they both had as young teenagers.

"Alright Miss," He sighed getting up from the sand and offering Leah his hand. "Let's get going, we gotta move quickly if we're going to make in it time."

Leah popped on to her feet and tried to dust off some the sand on her body, but as everyone knows wet sand gets _everywhere_ and is quite bothersome to remove.

"My things..." Leah looked mournfully at Danny

"A causality of the sea I'm afraid." He returned, coming beside her and encircling his arm around her waist. "I'll buy you a new one."

"I guess it is quite a romantic death." She half laughed as she looked up at him. "Lost to the sea under the cashing waves and a striking sunset." She mused to herself. "There are worse ways to die."

"I couldn't agree more." Danny replied giving her a little squeeze. "Here take my shirt until we can get you some proper clothes."

"Are you saying you wouldn't walk around with me in public?"

"Of course not, I would gladly take you anywhere Leah. But there is something quite conspicuous about me walking around with a half naked woman." He laughed. "I have a reputation to keep!"

"And what sort of reputation would that be?" she said as seriously as she could muster

"Better than yours." He whispered in her ear, with that roguish grin and twinkle in this eye that she just couldn't resist.

" Oh you're in trouble now!" she said as she tried to chase him up the sand dunes, laughing all the while.

* * *

"Alright, alright! I surrender!" Danny sighed as he keeled over, breathing heavily. He held up one hand to show his sincerity.

Leah was not far behind him as she halted to a stop beside him, breathing just as hard.

"Seriously though, we should get going." He said to her, still with a shadow of a smile gracing his lips.

"Give me a moment Danny. I need to run into the house so I can change my clothes before we head out."

"That's alright; I'll just wait out here for you. Dont be hours though, I know how you women can be."

"Won't you just tell me where we're going then? Just so I can get a feel of what to wear?" she begged, pouting her lips and batting her long eyelashes, a trick that has never failed her before.

He walked towards her with a sudden purpose and grabbed her by the waist. He leaned so close that she could almost feel his eyelashes against her forehead. Her knees weakened by the second, her eyes closed in preparation...

"No." He whispered and pulled away abruptly. "Got ya!"

"Danny!" she replied exasperatedly

"Get going!" he yelled giving her a gentle shove in the direction of her house.

"Ok! Ok! Give me five minutes!" she said already running.

"Leah darling!" called Betty from the entrance from her room

"Hum? What?" replied Leah startled by her voice.

"Leah whose shirt are you wearing? Where have you been?" Betty said to her giving her a very suspicious look.

"Nowhere. I've been nowhere. This shirt is mine. I've had it for ages." She replied absent mind idly as she busied around her room trying to find all her things.

She slipped into a lavender coloured sundress, that she just bought last week. It was the cleanest item in her wardrobe at the moment as her extracurricular activities had prevented her from doing all of her washing.

She let out a gasp as she looked into the mirror and saw her reflection. Her hair was an absolute mess and her face was all red from the roughness of the salt and sand upon it.

Muttering to herself she did as best as she could to tame her hair into some resemblance of a pinned up look and applied moderate amounts of make up. Since she had no idea where Danny was taking her tonight, so she made sure she was done up just enough. Barely satisfied with her appearance, she ran out of her room knocking over Betty and flew down the stairs and out of the door to meet Danny.

"Leah! Where are you going? Whats all the rush?" Betty screamed after her

"I'll be back I promise!"

"Someone has gone completely bonkers!" Betty cried after Leah, but she was already too far to hear it.

* * *

Leah ran out to meet Danny as quickly was her wedged heels permitted it. She caught him with his back to her and took a moment to revel in his stature. He really was truly handsome and just that thought made the colour rise in her cheeks.

Just then he turned around with a smile on his face almost like he could feel that she was there looking at him.

"You look beautiful!" he said as he came up to her and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you. You don't look so bad either."

They started off together down the street hand and hand, not speaking to her other just enjoying the moment, the feel of each other's touch.

"Danny where are we? Common! Where are we?" Leah laughed as she was lead blinded by Danny's hands to an unknown location.

"Patience! You will see in about 10 seconds." He said jokingly.

"You know that patience has never been one of my virtues."

"That's why I have never tried to surprise you before now."

His hands felt soft across her face and couldn't help but love the feeling of thier bodies so close together, her body kept on having involuntary shivers at the feeling of his breath tickling the soft hairs on the back of her neck.

"Ok open your eyes." He commanded.

She opened her eyes, to find herself in an unexpected place, yet one she had never been before. She stood on the tarmac of the bases' Air Field with a prepped airplane in front of her.

She turned to give Danny a confused look but he just stood there with a smile on his face.

"Have you ever seen the sunset over the harbour?" he asked lightly

"Of course I have who hasn't?" she guffawed

"Not like this you haven't! Hop in." He said lightly leading her by the hand as he opened the door to the aircraft. "Preferably sooner rather than later, I don't know if you know this but women tend not to be the type sort my superiors like hanging around the base."

"Danny isn't this, I don't know bad for you to be doing, I mean –"

"Since when has following the rules ever been an issue for you?" he smiled at her looking directly into her eyes.

Not waiting for her to answer he lifted her by the waist and gently lowered her into the cockpit of the plane. It would be a tight fit for the both of them to fit she noticed.

It was a beautiful evening, with the sun's dying rays streaking through the fluffy, white clouds colouring the sky with an array of golds and reds. The wind blew so soft and warm that it carried the islands scent in the air engulfing them into an aroma of wild flowers and salt from the sea. If she lived to be a hundred years old though Leah, it will be that scent in her memories that she could never forget.

Leah crouched foreword in her seat to allow Danny to swing himself in and give him enough room to squeeze in behind her. Like she expected it was a tight fit but it was not a bad one. She could feel the outline of all his muscles again her body and she couldn't help but smile to herself that her head tucked perfectly underneath his chin.

"Alright, it's time to get "Southern Belle" into the air." said Danny finally after spending a few moments checking all the gauges in the plane and finally getting the propellers rotating.

"Southern Belle?" questioned Leah doing her best to be heard over the roar of the engines

"Surprisingly, I didn't even name her, but it just seems to fit right ya know? It's always just me and her up here you gotta have someone to count on." He said patting the dashboard lovingly.

Just as he said that the plane lurched forward at optimum speed and zoomed down the runway, it was just moments later that she could feel the plane lifting gracefully off the runway, her wheels just skimming over the tops of the trees before sliding back into its holding.

"Atta girl 'Belle'." Danny said mainly to himself. "Doesn't matter how many times you do that, it's always just as freighting."

Leah nodded in agreement. She hadn't been in a plane for years. The last time was a rather traumatic experience involving her Rafe and Danny stealing her Daddy's crop duster and barely making it out of the plane with their lives. But she had been up once or twice with her Dad while he worked, and she remembered him always being tense during takeoff. Just being in the air made her homesick and miss her parents terribly though, it was hard to think of a single memory of her childhood that didn't involve her family and flying.

Almost like he was reading her mind Danny patted the side of her leg and said in reassurance, "Don't worry there Leah he knew what he was doing, he loves what he is doing. Everything is going to be alright."

As they sailed into the sky at unimaginable speed and grace, the plane sped into the clouds like an angel playing in the heavens.

These are the moments that Danny cherished the most. Nothing but open skies spread out before him, his plane dancing through the clouds. As the ground below seemed to disappear into the clouds, Danny couldn't help but feel purely elated.

The woman he loved the nestled in between his legs, her hands laid lightly on his thighs, he was flying through open air in one of the most picturesque skies he had ever experienced, and everything in life at the moment seemed perfect. He hadn't realized how incomplete he felt without Leah until she had come bursting back into his life and burning straight into his heart.

In the back of his mind he knew that Leah should still be filed as "Sister of Best Friend", and therefore untouchable, but right now his conscience could be stifled quite easily.

"You sure you know how to fly this thing?" she questioned, but he knew that she was joking.

"Who do you think I am? Still 10 years old and trying to learn how to fly?"

"Oh I remember Danny Walker the trouble you would get into. I don't know if I feel safe with you at the wheel – or er... stick." She corrected herself.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you Missus."

"Do what?" she played innocence

"Make fun of the person who has your life in their hands."

"You wouldn't dare!"

Pulling the control stick down as far as it would go; Danny let the plane drop into a steep nose dive.

"Oh no were out of control!!" he yelled at her

"What?! Danny stop it! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!"

"Ahhh!" he yelled trying not to burst out into laugher.

Her hands clenched into his thighs in fear but he couldn't hold it in any longer and he started to laugh.

"Stop laughing this is not funny! I'll stop I promise! Please!" she shoved into him

"OK. Ok. But it is a little funny." He said lightly using all of his strength in order to right the plane. He was used to doing those sorts of tricks, so he knew he hadn't put them in any real danger.

"Stupid arrogant boy!" she yelled at him "I know how hard that is to pull out of you don't have go showing off and get us both killed."

He wasn't showing off. Well maybe just a little, he thought to himself.

"Ok I'm sorry. Never again. But I would never get us into trouble you know that right? Your always safe with me." He said sincerely

"Yeah I know. I just like to hear you say it!" She turned back and gave him a winning smile.

But it was true what he said he would do anything he could do to protect her. Anything. He smiled as he remembered hunting for monsters in the closest when she was 5. He was scared to death too but he wasn't going to show it. Armed with his light and a pencil (his mom wouldn't let him bring the kitchen knife) we waltzed into her closet and chased out all of the "monsters". It was one of the proudest moments of his childhood life that is until it came to chasing away men from Leah in their high school days. He smiled to himself and chuckled slightly.

"What are you laughing about back there?" she asked

"Oh nothing." He responsed.

He changed the subject quickly.

"In about 5 seconds, you are about to see one of the most beautiful things in the world." he whispered into Leah's. She said nothing but nodded in response.

"5, 4, 3..." Danny counted back slowly as their plane ascended into the clouds, hearing Leah hold her breath in anticipation.

Their plane was met by a burst of golden rays that momentarily blinded them, but the sight was like nothing he had ever seen.

Leah gasped, "It's like a dream!" she said softly

And it was. The melding of colours and the sky meeting the sea was like nothing he had ever seen before. It was like they were slipping through the bonds of earth and soaring through the heavens, skipping on the waves of the sky.

"Danny! I don't know what to say!' she swivelled around in her seat in order to look deep into his eyes. "It's beautiful. Thank you." His stomach lurched and it had nothing to do with the flying.

"You're beautiful. I would do anything for you. I love you!" is what he wished he could say, but the words were stuck in his throat. So instead he let her snuggle closer into his lap, something which he didn't mind at all.

He let the plane drift through the clouds, in order for them to soak in the moment, let it last as long as he could.

"Can you do one of those fancy tricks? What are they called the..." she twirled her finger around in a corkscrew manner.

"A barrel roll?" he asked laughing slightly

"Um hum." She confirmed

"What like this?" he said jerking the control stick and forcing the plane to roll over itself.

Leah screamed in indignation at first and he almost righted the plane, until he heard her break out into laugher. He couldn't help but join in with her. She had always been like that, brave and fearless. He liked the feeling of the force of the roll pulling her body even closer to his.

Almost breathless from the feat, Leah looked back at him with shining eyes and said mischievously, "Let's do it again."

He was all too happy to oblige her.

When they touched back down on the ground it was already dark outside. Danny had no idea how long they had been up in the clouds but it was defiantly longer than he was allowed to be.

He touched down the plane more roughly than expected and they bumbled loudly down the tarmac. When he finally got the plane under control and fully stopped he heard Leah wince out in pain.

"Are you hurt?" he asked quickly suddenly aware of her

"No, I think I'm ok, it just... my back seems like its on fire!" she exclaimed

Now that she mentioned it he could feel the heart from her back searing through her dress and through his own shirt.

He examined her back slowly, it was red and chaffed. A very bad sunburn.

"Someone had too much fun in the sun I see."

"Is it that bad?" she asked

"Oh yeah. You should put something on that as soon you get back home. But for now..." he breathed cool air onto her hot skin hoping that is would ease some relief to her pain.

She looked back at him with a strange look on her face. "That feels nice." She exclaimed. Her eyes were shining with excitement and her cheeks were flushed.

"It's just from the flying." He though quickly. "Not for you." His conscience bleated mildly in the back of his mind. But again he managed to stifle it.

"I can think of something better." He said huskily as his conscience gave when last yell before it was silent for good. He leaned down and captured her mouth into a passionate kiss.

He suddenly realized how small the cockpit of a plane really was.

* * *

Hope you liked! REIVEW! please and thank you!


	13. Translucent Forest

**Well hello everybody! I've decided that I'm going to try to pick this story up for a little bit longer. Thank you all for your patience, that is if I still have any readers at all! Reviews greatly appreciated as always! x AR**

**ps. I have upped the rating a little bit just to make sure for content, but I don't think that the maturity level is thaaat much more mature than previous chapters so I hope that doesn't turn anybody off reading it. Please tell me if it does and i'll go back to the lower rating.**

disclaimer: I do not own any of the rights for this except for my own original characters.

* * *

**Chapter 13: Translucent Forest**

Leah climbed as quickly as she could out of the cockpit as the shouting grew nearer to them.

"That plane was supposed to be back here an hour ago!" the rough voice said as the footsteps became louder and louder to where the plane stood.

Danny followed right behind her as he grabbed her by the hand and lead her across the tarmac, trying to keep the shadows of the other aircraft.

"Billy? Lt. Thompson is that you?" hollered the voice chasing after them. " Hell boy, I know that's you. You're going to be to in a world of trouble tomorrow!"

"Sorry Earl, I probably deserve all types of punishment for my behaviour!" Danny yelled back trying his best to imitate his friends voice.

Leah giggled as she let herself be lead into the a large warehouse which was filled with billowing silk parachutes that were being hung up for the pilots to fold them into their packs for the next day's training.

" You're so mean!" Leah whispered angrily, only to be betrayed by the smile that crept out from the corner of her mouth.

She slowed down to a walk as she looked back towards the entrance of the hanger expecting Danny to be directly following her, but he was no where in sight.

"Danny! Danny, where are you?" he said in the softest, yet loudest voice she could muster as she did not want for their cover to be compromised.

She was met with nothing but the sounds of the wind whispering though the steel entrance of the building that was slowly swishing the skirts of the parachutes all around her.

She walked slowly through the translucent forest, feeling the silky fabric run through her hands as she turned every parachute in hopes of finding him. Leah silently traipsed the concrete grounds, but as she did an overwhelming feeling of longing and excitement started to build in the pit of her stomach, so strong that she felt like she would almost be ill. She could feel herself start to glow at the intensity of this emotion also causing her breath to quicken in short, passionate bursts.

She suddenly stopped and looked all around her, as she this her dress mimicked the swirling motions of all the fabrics around her, and it made her smile even more.

Leah looked behind her and staggered to a halt as she saw a silhouette of a man emerging from a row of parachutes directly in front of her. She was frightened for a moment until she realized that the outline of the figure coming towards her could only be that of one person, a person that she had known her entire life.

Danny walked towards her with no emotions betraying his face, except for his gaze. His eyes were fixated on Leah, direct and hungry, the red flecks in his deep brown eyes caught the light in a way that made them look like they were burning with fire. Leah felt as if she was stuck to ground, unable to move. All she could do was stare at his body moving gracefully towards her, she noticed that his chest was rising and falling in a rate that quicker than normal as well.

He closed that last few meters towards her in three slow and limbering strides. As he stopped right in front of her, Leah could do nothing but just stare up at him and take in his full, undeniably commanding stature.

" I thought you had left me." she stated bluntly

" No Leah, I'd never leave you."

As he looked down at her with those burning eyes Leah could not help but wanting to touch any part of him that she could in order to be nearer to him. And as he leaned down closer to her, so close that she could smell his sweet scent and natural warmth that his body had always radiated, her arms reached up and encircled them behind his head, she gazed directly into his eyes and looked as deep as she could into them for a moment before she closed the gap between them and their lips collided together in a fervent kiss.

She relished the feel of his body pressing closer into hers, different than any other time they had kissed before this. Tonight as the humidity of the sweet air engulfed them in their tiny pocket of bliss, their need for each other was ignited, and each of them fought for the control and ability to be close to one another. Before this night, their intimate interactions had been chaste, stolen moments in dark places with the imminent threat of guilt that usually followed soon after. But now that barrier that had always been created between them had suddenly been knocked down, sending them into this fairytale limbo where nothing could harm them, or stop them from doing whatever they wanted. Tonight, Leah knew that for a the first time in a very long time that everything was falling into place. For the first time this intense feeling of certainty did not scare her.

Leah let herself be moved slowly backwards deep into the centre of room, the feeling of the silky parachutes against her skin was intensified by her sensitivity of her nerves that seemed to feel everything around her at heightened rate.

They slowed to a stop as Leah looked up into Danny's eyes and returned the small smile that betrayed his stoic nature. She reached up on either side of her body and grabbed hold of the fabric that was encircling them and began to tightly enclose them in the warm and muted light that was allowed to seep through the fabric. They basked in the comforting peachy light that engulfed them and Leah let herself be wrapped again into the confines of Danny's strong embrace as he encircled his arms around her waist and pulled her even closer towards him.

She instinctively closed her eyes as he dipped his head and began to gently kiss the tender skin of her neck, a spot that sent electrifying waves of warmth down her back and straight into her heart. She couldn't help but bury her head into the crevice of his neck as emitted a strong exhale of breath in response to his touch. Danny knew that this was a sign that Leah wanted more and he wasted no time in lifting her up off the ground not breaking their embrace. Leah dutifully wrapped her legs strongly around his waist as she pulled his face closer to her's in order for the kiss to deepen.

She hadn't even realized that he had lowered them both onto the ground until the coolness of the concrete on her warm skin made her jolt foreword.

Danny looked at her with an expression of shock and immediately removed his hands from her waist and sat back, clearly worried that he was doing something wrong.

She laughed quietly at his reaction and made his mind at ease as she ran her fingers down either end of the chain around his neck, in which the tags attached were resting tantalizingly between the fleshy mounds on her chest, and looped her index finger on the end while she slowly pulled his lips closer to hers until they were locked into a gentle kiss. She could tell through the kiss that his lips were fighting back a smile.

She let her body relax against the ground and relish in the feeling of Danny slowly moving his hand up her thigh, gently pulling up the fabric of her dress along with it until the delicate lines of her garter were exposed.

He slowed his advancement as he rested his forehead against hers and breathed heavily, in and out, moving in sync with that of her chest. She could see the dewiness of his brow as the heat of their bodies and the humidity in the air caused the temperature to arise around them. He looked deeply into her eyes as if he wanted her to show some kind of absolution.

She gave this as she quickly moved her hands to his shirt and slowly started to unbutton it one by one, occasionally looking up into the eyes of the man above her who was looking at her like he was boring a whole directly into her very core.

As she finished the last button she slid the fabric off his chest and over his shoulders to reveal his broad and tanned shoulders, that had been kissed with freckles from the sun. She could feel his desire for her as the weight of his body on top of hers made their bodies inseparable.

She was wrapped up in her own emotions until Danny shifted his weight which made his profile catch the light a certain way and surprisingly distorted him to look like a monster from her past. Leah thought that she could even see those cold blue eyes looking at her with disgust, the weight of Danny's body on her's suddenly felt like it was crushing her, like she couldn't breathe, so like many of the other times which she had hidden in the back of her memory. The sickly sweet scent of him lingered in her mind as she could remember him forcing her to the ground. These memories had not come to the surface in a very long time. However she was overwhelmed with their vividness and reality. Leah instinctively could not help but push against Danny's chest to force him off of her body.

Danny looked momentarily shocked at her actions but he obediently complied and moved off her and laid beside her on his both looked in silence at the ceiling for what seemed like eternity, reeling from intensity of the emotions that were passing between them.

Leah was the first to break the silence.

" Danny I'm sorry, I just - I can't", she tried not to sound so defeated.

He cut her off abruptly and pressed up against his arms so that he was staring at her from an arms length away.

" You don't have to explain anything to me, I understand" he replied knowingly

" I just want you to know that I want to be with you more than anything, but I need time." she said rolling over to look at him in the eyes. "Can you give that to me?"

" I can give you anything you want Leah. All I want to do is make you happy."

He reached up and smoothed her hair from her face and squeezed her hand in reassurance.

They lay there together in silence for a few minutes with their hands interlaced and Leah's head resting against his bare chest. She was safe in that moment from all the nightmares that had plagued her.

" We can do this you know. You and I, we can make this work." Danny suddenly said, " We just need to figure it out. Maybe this was meant to happen, to help us to slow us down a little. Maybe it will help us start from the beginning."

Leah took a moment to let this proposal sink in. She wanted them to work out, she needed for their relationship last, for if it didn't she did not know how she could manage being alone in a place so far from home.

" Well where do we start from then?" she asked

" How 'bout this..." he mused, "We start like any old couple does it, you know, I can ask you on a proper date, you dress up real nice, I take you to a fancy dinner, I bring you home before the sun sets... a date that would make your Daddy not wanna take my head to a propeller." he laughed as he sat up and grabbed his shirt off the floor.

" We can start by trying to be a least ending the night fully closed." he added as he did up all the buttons but the two at the top, playfully showing off a little too much chest.

Leah pouted her lips in disappointment but couldn't help but laugh too.

" Alright then, so the rules are no inappropriate touching, no kissing, no nakedness... at least for a little while... is that right?" she said slowly making sure she heard these ridiculous rules correctly. " That means you're gonna have to take me on some pretty remarkable dates to make up for those losses!"

" That's right, no inappropriate touching," he stated as he slid his hand up her leg once more and playfully squeezed the sensitive skin on her waist making her shudder, "no kissing," as he leaned down as gave her a soft and slow passionate kiss, " and absolutely no nakedness," and quickly reached behind her back and snapped her bra clip, unexpectedly releasing the clasp and freeing her breasts from their confinement.

She gasped as she smacked him on the shoulder, Leah could feel the redness quickly streaming to her cheeks.

" Danny Walker, you rake! Taking advantage of me in a weak state!" she tried to sound offended but she was all too betrayed by her sly smile.

"Just having my last bit of fun before you cast me into the monastery." he joked around standing to his feet, and turned his back to Leah so she could adjust herself.

" Let's just take these new rules day by day then... test the waters out a little, I have a feeling they are going to be a little harder than we think. I know how men can be." she half joked.

" Wanna bet?" he challenged back

" Alright deal, I bet you are going to be the first one to break the rules Danny Walker." she firmly stated

" I guess were just going to have to see then." he said as he took her extended hand and helped her to her feet.

" Do you think it's safe to leave now, _Billy_." she joked emphasizing the false name with humour.

" Well, I hope so, I'm not ready to get into trouble any time soon. I already have a spotless record." Dany said as he took her hand and began to lead Leah out of the room.

" Well other than all those times back in Long Island, and a couple of times in Hawaii, you know for all your little stunts you pulled off."

" Yeah, other than that I guess." he laughed back

As they reached the gate that led back to the road, Danny slowed to a stop and looked at Leah.

" So, uh, I know that this is a little unexpected and you weren't really expecting this at all, but I was wondering if you kinda, well, if you wanted to go on a date with me sometime, say I dunno, on Friday night?" he said as he tried to keep a straight face

Leah couldn't help but laugh back at him. However, she decided to play along nonetheless.

" I don't usually go on dates with flyboys that I haven't known for very long, but I guess I could make an exception, just this once."

" Well, I thank you for giving me a chance Miss. You'll certainly regret it, I'm the epitome of a Southern Gentlemen, you'll see."

" You better not let me down, soldier. I've got a pretty hot-headed brother, and a Daddy that wouldn't mind beatin' a guy up for not treating me how I deserve."

" Well I wouldn't wanna go mess around with that now would I?" he responded as he led her by the hand down the sidewalk.

" Want me to take you home? I probably should before I get into any more trouble tonight."

Leah just nodded her consent as she walked arm and arm with Danny through the night wondering what kind of change the morning light would accompany for the days ahead.

* * *

Sunday was the their only day off of the week and the girls were determined to grab hold of every minute. Work at the hospital had still been fairly slow, therefore the Army decided to add many other ventures into their nursing duties in order to keep their medical skills sharp. Running first aid clinics, food and clothing drives and free check ups for the local communities supplemented their hospital hours and were quite cumbersome and labour intensive. It barely left time for other extra curricular's that the they used to be so fond of before this new regimen.

Today the general orders were to spend some much needed quality time with each other, shopping, cleaning the house, writing letters and if time permitted a cocktail or two. With Sandra having already handed out a very detailed daily itinerary, the girls were prepped and ready for the big day ahead. Even if the 7am wake up call seemed a little daunting to most!

"Ladies please, it is currently 9:22am and we have yet to reach our first intended destination! That leaves us 42 minutes behind schedule!" screamed a very irate, and dressed Sandra from the bottom of the stairs.

" What do you think she's going to say when she realizes that Betty hasn't even made it out of bed yet?" giggled Sandra to Evelyn, who was groggily changing out of her night clothes.

She was met up a symphony of unsympathetic groans and laments by the girls upstairs who were still preparing for their supposedly relaxing day.

" I don't even care. I just want to have an extra 10 minutes of sleep and good strong cup of coffee." sighed Evelyn slumping back down on the end of her bed.

" Well we might as well get up now, were all half way there already." said a flustered Martha as she stuck her head into the bedroom door. " I really want to make it to the shops before they are swarmed with hundreds of other customers. You know how I hate it when you can't even move!"

" Righto baby cakes, give us a moment, we'll both be down in ten. Right Ev?" replied Barbara

" Mm hum." murmured Evelyn while applying her lipstick, "Why don't you go check on Betty and Leah to make sure that they are both not still getting an extended beauty sleep!"

" I can't believe those two! Up late every night doing Lord know's what, can't even obey to a simple, previously agreed upon itinerary..." said Sandra as she stormed up the stairs determinedly trying to rally everyone.

She haughtily shuffled down the hallway and forcefully pried open the door to Betty and Leah's room. She was not very happy to see that the lights were off and the curtains were securely closed to block off any offending sunlight that might disturb a good night's slumber.

Sandra angrily waltzed over to the bedroom, nearly tripping to her death on the pile of clothes and shoes that littered the floor. "_How do girls live like this? With junk all over the place! Who would ever need a carpet?"_ she thought as she grasped both hands over the curtain opening and with a mischievous smile and a short tug on the fabric the room was instantly enveloped into the brilliance of the Hawaiian sunshine.

A loud shriek a kin to those found in horror movie pictures came instantly from Betty's bed as soon as the first ray hit her bed.

" The light! Please Sandra, make it stop. I beg you!" cried the muffled lump under the cover's that was Betty.

" I have no sympathy for self inflicted pain, Betty Bayer! You should have thought of this last when you were out drinking and partying until the early hours of the morning. What time did you even get back in?" said Sandra as she sat on the edge of Betty's bed.

Betty slowed lifted the covers and peeked slyly from over the edge of the duvet. "Well, what time is it now?"

" 9:30" said Sandra bluntly

" Okay so that means about 2 hours ago..." blushed Betty " But who knows what time sleeping beauty over there did!" she added, throwing a heavy pillow over to the short distance to Leah's bed. "She hasn't made a peep all morning!"

"Leah, you wake up right this instant. Common young lady, the day is young, we don't want to waste the short amount of time we have today."

Sandra sprang up and marched over to Leah's bed in the corner with intent to wake her up in the most inconvenient way possible. Betty sat up too, not wanting to miss the show.

" Good morning sunshine!" said Sandra with a sing songy voice while simultaneously ripping off all of the covers.

They both looked at the bed dumbfounded at the cold and empty mattress that usually contained Leah McCawley.

Betty was quick to call in Barbra and Evelyn and as the girls were all in the same room they all looked at each other with knowing eyes.

" Not again!" sighed Barbra as she smoothed over the duvet

" Where could that silly girl run off to again last night? She better not be making a habit of this, scaring us all half to death."

" Oh please, ladies, let the girl have some fun. You know that this has been too long in the making to stop them." said Evelyn with a smile on her face as all the other girls started to break out into contagious laughter.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed! If anyone has any suggestions for how they want the direction the story, I am always open to them. Happy reviewing!**


	14. Sickly Sweet Pie

**Thanks for the the positive reviews everybody! Keep it up and so will I!**

****disclaimer: I do not own anything but my original characters

Chapter 14:

**Sickly Sweet Pie**

* * *

Being the gullible twelve year old girl that she was back in the day, it took a while for Leah to realize that not everything happens according to fairytale like stories. With all the trials and tribulations that had occurred in her life how could a self respecting, independent women like herself actually believe in them anymore? Up until a couple of weeks ago it had been all to easy to talk herself out of princess fantasies and those all to cliched happy endings that occupied the many math and biology classes of her youth. That is, up until a couple of weeks ago.

She awoke to the sounds of the ocean and the gulls screaming high above, her eyes were greeted by their ethereal wings floating on the warm breeze above her.

However, it was the hot breath on her neck and the and strong hold on her waist that truly awoken her nerves.

"Sometimes I just wanna fly away into the clouds like those birds, I wanna know where they go." she mused. "That's what I would like, nothing but freedom to do anything that I want, go anywhere, see everything that the world has to offer." She whispered to the man enveloping her in the warm embrace that she had become all to accustomed to.

"Can you take me up again?" she questioned hopefully.

Danny murmured his agreement and nuzzled in face closer into the crook of her neck. Leah could feel the day old hairs left on his chin scratching her sensitive skin but she did not mind at all. It meant that he hadn't left her side for long enough to dispose of them.

" I'll do you one better, when I'm done with this soldier life, and am rich and famous living in some big ol' house somewhere with Rita Hayworth rubbing my feet, I might lend you one of my planes and teach you a thing or two. Get you flying all by yourself, now how about that?" He looked over at her with a straight face, only betrayed by the mischievous sparkle in his eye.

" That sounds good to me, but I think your gonna have to modify your expectations on the other half of that dream. There's no way Rita would go anywhere near a pair of dirty old farmboy feet."

" I think you underestimate my charm Miss." he replied, readjusting himself so he fit closer in behind her.

It had been a busy evening for the two of them. As soon as Leah got off work at 5 pm Danny was there waiting to pick her up to take her to dinner, than the new movie that was showing downtown. The best part of Leah's day was right at the end of it when she knew she would see Danny propped up in the exit doorframe, waiting to grab her hand and lead her to whatever activity he had planned for that evening. He never failed to show her something new, broadening her mind and her heart to all the fantastic places and people that the island had to offer. The night before they eventually met up with Red and Betty and decided to have a drink at the Tiki bar that they had grown so fond of visiting in their growing weeks on the island.

Learning how to be friends again was easier than they both thought especially after everything that they had been through in the past couple months. What the hard part was keeping the other half of their agreement under very serious, bonding pact made in that airplane hanger to try to keep their romantic relationship to a minimal was harder than they anticipated. Hand holding, hugs and chaste kisses on the less sexually categorized body parts were negotiated as acceptable. They wanted to take things as slow as possible, because it seemed in their history when things got out of control a ruinous fight was always inevitable in the future. Which was something that both Danny and Leah wanted to avoid at all costs. However, neither party seemed to have a great sense of self control, especially after a fourth Mai Tai.

"We gotta enforce some kind of penalty for breaking the rules like this Leah." laughed Danny as he shifted himself on the bench of the car that was their bed for the second time this week.

" We are not exactly breaking the rules, we are currently in a very public place and are doing nothing wrong at the moment!" giggled Leah turning over to face him

" At the moment maybe, however I do recall a little moment last night, involving you and me on the Hulamani dance floor, something that led us being not so nicely removed from the building due to inappropriate behaviour, something that was very unfitting for two Lieutenants", stated Danny as he suggestively smiled at Leah. "I blame you Lieutenant McCawley, taking advantage of me when I was in such an effected state."

" Don't you dare blame me for this! I was raised a true Southern belle and therefore all the blame must be placed upon the gentleman involved. By the way I use the term 'gentleman' quite loosely in this case."

" Well I don't know about you, but I haven't encountered too many ladies in my life who have slept in a car on the beach two nights in a row, with unsuspecting officers I'll add. I'm afraid my dear that your reputation is most decidedly spoiled." he said as he brought his hand to her cheek and smoothed back a strand of hair and had fallen into her face. "What would your Momma have to say?"

He pressed his body closer to hers as he leaned into and gave her a swift kiss on the forehead.

" I guess there are worst things in life than having your reputation denounced along with a guy you kinda like."

" Oh yeah? You kinda like me?" replied Danny as he sat up and looked at her with that smoldering gaze and quickened her heart every time.

" Maybe. Maybe not. You'll never really know," she shot right back, certainly not willing to give into anymore rule breaking this morning. " However, right now you are my chauffeur. I am already an hour late for ladies day, if I miss out on another one, the girls might think I've gone running back to Tennessee."

" Ah I see then, well I guess I must give into a direct request from a lady. I don't see how I could ever resist!" Danny replied removing Leah's hands that unknown to her had made their way to rest gently on his chest, and then lithely jumped into the drivers seat.

Leah instantly missed the heat of his body.

" Alright Miss, where to?" he responded turning on the car and shattering the pleasant ocean sounds with the roaring of the engine.

"Home please, and as quickly as possible!"

Leah tried to climb into the front seat as she had always hated sitting alone in the backseat.

"No, no, no." replied Danny holding her back, "If you want to be seen as a lady you can't be caught dead riding in the front seat with the likes of riff raf like myself" he smiled

She pouted, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and clasped her hands around his chest, trying to get him to change his mind.

"If you let me come up with you I might be a little more inclined for some more rule breaking with riff raf chauffeurs." she whispered in his ear as suggestively as she could muster.

She had never seen Danny move over that fast to accommodate her to sit beside him.

" That means you'll have to bake a lot more of your Momma's buttermilk peach pie for me." he stated as he lifted his arm over his head and placed it firmly around Leah's shoulders as she snuggled into his side.

" And why's that?"

" Because every time you break a rule on me, that's the price your gunna have to pay - I just came up with that now."

" That's a pretty demanding price Lieutenant, I don't know how I'll ever think of something for you that will even rival it's complexity."

" You're a smart girl Leah. I trust that you can come up with something. I'm just excited for that pie I'm gunna be eating over the next couple of days. You owe me a lot of pie." he smirked looking over to her.

" I do not! Not that many ... I think." Leah hesitated with shock, and a bit of a blush

" Well, let me see I should probably get two pies for last's nights kiss, one for the night before, um, then there was that very uncouth touching at the air base dance last week, oh right that other kiss the night before that... How long do you want me to go back?" he drawled mischievously.

" Okay! Stop it! I know we have been little delinquents recently, but you can trust that all will change if you like. Once I tally up my side of the story Danny, you'll really be sorry with all the favours you're going to have to owe me." she giggled

" There are not very many things in this world that I like more than peach pie, Miss McCawley. Not very many." he stated as he looked down longingly at her.

Leah leaned over and smoothed his windswept hair back and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek.

" Well you might like peach pie, but when I tell you my term's you'll realize that I'm not gunna loose this bet!"

" We'll see."

" Umm-humm, I bet we will." Leah stated as he snuggled in closer to his warm body as they sailed down the narrow road away from the beach and back into town.

They drove in silence as they rode down the foliage covered streets approaching Leah's house. She grabbed Danny's arm and looked down at his watch. It was 10:00am, about three hours late for their intended start to the day.

She thought that hopefully the girls wouldn't be too mad at her, and with any luck she could quickly go back to bed and not be disturbed until later this evening when she wanted to rejoin the festivities.

As they pulled into the driveway of the house there was no signs of the girls anywhere, luckily, as she was not in the mood for some serious intervention confrontation. She had sand everywhere, her hair was a mess, and she desperately wanted to take a shower. Then she could hopefully catch a few hours of much needed sleep, before the activities of the evening began.

Danny hopped out of the car and walked around the other side to open the door for Leah.

" My lady. I hope that your ride was ever so pleasurable and to your exceptionally refined tastes." he gloated while opening the side door to let her slide out of the car.

" Yes, quite satisfactory indeed." Leah giggled at the false frivolity that the two had been playing at this morning.

She got out of the car and looked up at Danny who was standing so close she could feel the heat radiating off his chest that she craved so much. The two stood there for a moment before Danny broke the silence.

" Am I going to see you tonight?" he casually asked

" I dunno, depends wether or not we get through all the days planned activities without dying."

" Well if you happen to make it out alive, me and the boys are going down to the Hulamani again, hopefully they'll let us in after last night." he smirked

Laughing, Leah mulled over this proposal, trying as hard as she could not to make it seem that she would do anything in her power to get to see Danny tonight.

"Yeah maybe. We haven't all got together in such a long time, were probably due a nice reunion."

" So, it's a date then?" asked Danny

" No, it's a reunion." replied Leah slyly but still taking one step closer to Danny, as he on cue enveloped her into a strong embrace.

" What are your plans for today?" Leah cut in looking up through her eyelashes, into Danny's deep brown eyes.

" Probably clock in a little flying time, they seem to have us go out more and more everyday. It's good though, were going to need all the practice we can get." he said causally pulling Leah a little closer.

She could not help but feel a huge feeling of dread that overwhelmed her at the mention of his eventual deployment.

For once everything seemed to be falling into place. Everything with Danny was perfect. Yet she could not shake the overwhelming emotions of dread and anxiety that plagued her, feelings that were so strong that almost caused her physical pain. Everyone around her was happy, healthy and most importantly thriving in their paradise bubble of the summer Hawaiian sun. Yes, her beloved brother Rafe was on the other side of the earth, bouncing in a heap of sheet metal with the sole protection of metal bullet's and God's good humour. However, she knew that he was smart, strong and resilient, qualities that their parents had installed in them since infancy. And if something were to ever happen to him in those flying coffins, he could find a way to bring himself home. She felt comfort in this thought and obsessed over it when news came back from England about heavy causalities, and bloody confrontations.

She knew that Danny wanted to join her brother, over there fighting, doing the best they could to defend the country. However, it never seemed to be a real possibility. When he brought it up so casually in conversation, didn't he know that it upset her so much?

She could feel the tears beginning to well up in her eyes. She tried to be strong as she could, but sometimes the weight of the violence impending on their little paradise was too much. She unravelled herself from Danny's embrace and placed her hands on his chest in preparation to push him away from her.

" What's this now Leah? What's the matter?" he pressed, looking confused about how their content state turned so quickly.

" Nothing, it's nothing. I'm fine, I just want to go back inside now." She was betrayed by the unstableness of her voice, as it slightly wavered on the last syllables.

" Leah, I know you, what's the matter? Why are you so upset." he pressed, lightly holding onto her wrists so she couldn't walk away, something he was all too familiar with.

"Please Danny, let me go. I don't want to talk about this now." she replied, letting a few tears escape and cascade down her cheeks.

" I'll let you go Leah, but I wont let you walk away from me. Not now."

As he released her wrists, she walked towards the entrance of her house. She tripped where the grass met the pavement and stumbled onto her hands and knees, she could feel that scrapes stinging like fire as she remained motionless except for her heaving chest as she was fighting back tears. It was like the entire weight of all the emotions were coming out of her at this moment.

" This war is coming to America Danny, and you and I both know that. You prepare to fight in it every single day. But you're going to find yourself a way into this war early just like Rafe. It's all I can manage to remain strong!" she stumbled in a hush tone, still looking down at the pavement.

" Leah, this is what's been bothering you all this time? You know me. Whatever happens, where ever I go, I'll be fine, I promise. And I haven't gone anywhere yet. I'm still here." he said sitting on the ground with her and turning her face towards him. "I'm still here."

She couldn't think of anything to say without bursting into tears again, so she just turned into him and hugged him as tight as she could.

" You be safe Danny Walker, don't go off and do anything stupid, or I'll kill you! That's my promise." she laughed through her tears.

" I'll do my best, but I guess that mean's we can't hold weekly chicken tournaments with the boys?" he laughed back

" As long as I don't find out!"

" Alright then I'll keep that in mind, I don't want to see such a pretty face being all upset." cupping her cheeks with his hands and wiping the offending tears of her face. "You're so beautiful Leah, and I-I... well how am I supposed to take you out on the town looking like this?" he stated as the colour in his cheeks began to rise from his neck.

She looked at him hopefully thinking that a certain three word phrase was going to leave his lips. Disappointment struck her when he stumbled from his intended track.

He stood up and extended his hand to help Leah to her feet. She gladly took it and took one last look into his eyes before giving him a small smile and turning away to walk back to her home.

She was surprised when she felt his strong hands reach around her and pull her back towards him. Their bodies collided in a fervent attempt to be as close as they could to one another. She grasped the back of his neck and smoothly ran her fingers through his silky, tousled hair as he leaned down and slowly captured her lips with his own. Their ability to move together as one was something that neither of them could deny. Their bodies moved in sync together, and was something that she had not experienced with anyone else. The touch of his lips against her's, the warm, strong touch of his body near her sent an animalistic craving, a need for him that went down straight into her core.

But for some reason there was something that she could not let go of, the feeling of anxiety and danger was too prominent to ever let herself fully be with Danny. She wanted to be with him more than anyone else in this world. But still that dreadful feeling she couldn't shake that made her feel like running.

So again, she pulled away from him. If she had been with any other man, she would have see the frustration in their eyes, even if they tried to cover it, the frustration that they must feel with being with someone that was constantly pulling away. Not Danny, he was patient with her, a quality that he has always had, and something that was not wasted on her.

" I guess I'll see you tonight Danny?" she smiled as she distanced herself from him

He smiled understandingly as he kissed her on the forehead.

" I guess I'll see you then." And he winked as he walked with her to the start of the dirt path that led up towards their modest accommodations.

He leaned against the hood of the car as she walked up to the front door of her house, watching her every step. He was constantly wondering what he could do to make her realize, make her understand that even if he has to go away, he'll find a way to come back to her. Like they had done every time something had torn their relationship apart.

He looked at her as she opened the door to their front door and waved goodbye to him. As she closed the door he sighed and hopped into the drivers seat. Content with the fact that it will only be a couple of hours before he get's to see her again.

* * *

As Leah opened the front door, she smiled to herself. The day had already been going so well, she was excited for what the night would bring. No matter what, it couldn't be bad as long as they were together.

She waltzed into the front foyer, only to be accosted by the stares of her room mates, all sitting silently in the living room.

" Ah Leah McCawley, long time no see, We have been expecting you." said Sandra rising to her feet

" How was your evening Miss?"

Leah grinned sheepishly as she ran her fingers through her hair and nervously approached the group of girls awaiting for the torture that was sure to come.

" Leah and Danny, kissing in a tree k-i-s-s-i-n-g, first come love, then comes marriage..." sang all the girls together laughing and running around Leah.

" Goodbye ladies, I'm not talking to you about this!"

" Common Leah, you gotta give us lonely girls something to go on!" screamed Barbra

Leah grinned and sighed to herself as she had no way of avoiding this and sat down on the couch and prepared to tell the girls a very long story.

* * *

After a day of traipsing up and down the streets of the main shopping area of Honolulu, the girls came home laden with colorful carrier bags from stores from all over the city. The all walked silently and winded into the front door of their house just at the sun began to set.

With an exhausted huff Leah threw all her bags onto the floor and sunk down onto the sofa in the living room.

" Leave me here to die!" she exclaimed dramatically, flinging her arms out limply to the sides.

" Oh please it was just bit of shopping, clearly you've never seen Barbara hit the floor at Barney's after a Friday night paycheck." joked Betty

" Well we gotta find someway to burn all our hard earned cash! Those sailors are too easily swayed into buying you anything you want. It's really become tiring." laughed Barbara

" Really? You tired of male attention?" said Leah as she sat up from the couch

" Oh please Ladies are you serious?, I live for it!"

They all giggled as they all began to open their purchases and compare what they bought.

" So were all going out tonight right?" asked Betty holding up a new slinky black dress that she had bought. " I just gotta show this dress off to the world, it would be a crime to humanity if it was left inside for the evening."

They all looked around the room, looking for everyone else's consent. Everyone had the glint in their eyes, and smirk on their face that showed their desire to go out. All but Sandra who was swayed with a huff after the other's all stared at her with stern gazes.

" Oh fine I'll go!" she said, rising to her feet. " But I call the shower first!" she screamed as she took off towards the bathroom.

She was met with cries of anguish as the other's protested, many of them claiming that they all had called it first.

" You snooze you loose Ladies." replied Sandra through the closed door, which gratefully muffled her laugh.

The other's eventually got over their loss of the showering time, but busied themselves prepping themselves for the night ahead.

An hour later they were all showered and ready, all wearing new clothes, shoes and makeup. Betty had even let Leah use her new hot rollers and now had loose curls that bounced past her shoulders and framed her face unlike she had ever seen it before.

Paired with a white and peach polka dot dress, she found at this small side street boutique Leah felt confidant and excited for the evening to come.

"Hurry up girls! Everywhere is gonna be closed by the time we leave this house." she yelled at everyone else who was just doing the finishing touches of the outfits.

" Just because you wanna get back to your boyfriend Leah doesn't mean you have to be bossy towards the rest of us!" Martha retorted

" He is not my boyfriend!" Leah stated firmly. She crossed her arms across her chest to make sure that the rest of them got the message too.

" Call it whatever you want honey, but you two are more than just friends, everyone else but you two seem to notice that."

" Were not, we discussed it, we have... rules." Leah responded, loosing her surety with every word

Betty walked towards Leah, grabbing her purse off the counter and stated gently. " Well, whatever you guys are, it makes you happy, so more the power to you."

She looped her arm through Leah and called out to the rest of the girls to rally and get out the door. With her pushiness it was exactly five minutes later that they were all teetering down the road towards the Hulamani.

Just as they reached the sand where the light and music from the bar met, Leah reached down into her pocket and realized that she had forgotten her purse back at home.

"Ah shoot, guys I left my purse back at home, I guess that's what I get for rushing y'all out the door." she laughed as she slowed down to a stop. " Im just gonna run back and get it."

" Do you want one of us to come with you love?" Betty asked

" Nah, that's okay, you guys go in there, save me a seat and buy me a drink! I'll only be a couple of minutes."

Leah turned away and quickened her pace as she wanted to get her bag as quickly as possible.

She was humming to herself as she walked back onto the lighted street, and she couldn't help but smile at the thought of seeing Danny tonight. She had even painted her nails his favourite colour. Just in case he might take notice.

Lost in her thoughts about what fun all her friends would be having right now she quickened her pace and rounded the corner, finally leaving the view of the bar behind her.

She only got a few steps until she heard from behind her a raspy and slurred voice.

" I was wondering when I was going to she your ugly face around here."

Leah stopped dead in her tracks, her heart hammering from her chest and into her brain. The world seemed to stop for a moment as she stared into the cold, unrelenting gaze of Dr. Robert Stewart.

"What do you want from me?" she stammered out as he took one long, limbering towards her, like a predator stalking it's prey.

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**Hope you liked it! Reviews greatly appreaciated. AR x**


	15. Rest of Our Lives

**Hello All! Welcome back old readers and a big welcome to all the new ones! I'm so glad you're all here to read the newest chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 15: **

**The Rest of Our Lives**

Danny leaned foreword against the bar to take another sip of his beer, all the while darting his eyes from side to side in anticipation. His glass still remained half empty; gone were the thick dewy tears sliding lazily down his frosted glass. What remained was a vessel full of lukewarm, unappealing tap water as far as he was concerned. Leah had yet to return to the bar and as every second ticked on the pineapple shaped clock on the wall the more concerned he became.

"Give it a rest Danny, it's only been 15 minutes, I'm sure she'll be here any moment. Sit down, relax and enjoy your beer." chided Anthony giving him a strong pat on the shoulder while lifting his beer back into his hands.

The group were sitting in their favourite side corner of the bar, which faced the open wall that overlooked what would have been the oceanfront had it not been for the darkness which was ever creeping over them, keeping in time with the pineapple clock mocking Danny from above the table. The bar was full of people and loud music, all bustling around with happy, drunken smiles on there faces. All the giddy girls and swaggering men going about their business like there was no trouble in the world. Sometimes Danny wished like he could be like them, no real responsibility and loyalty to none but oneself. But he wasn't and therefore he cared deeply about those around him.

But sometimes he worried that he cared too much not leaving those around him to make their own choices and follow their own paths. He resented that level of control that his father had placed upon him throughout childhood. He panicked that maybe by trying to keep his word to Rafe that he was smothering Leah under his control. He had to accept that she was a grown women who could look after herself and therefore he faked a smile to the group and lifted the beer to his lips while draining it with two swift, breathless gulps. The table erupted into hysterics of clapping and laughter at the display, but he still couldn't quell his thoughts about Leah's safety.

* * *

Leah stopped dead in her tracks at the ice cold voice of Robert, followed by the sheer overwhelming feeling of being trapped, like a rat in a cage. She tried to remain clam for a moment, but she knew that her eyes were with wide terror as she desperately looked around to see if there was any opportunity to escape.

" Not so fast Miss!" chided Robert, as he lazily stepped in front of Leah cornering her into the wall as he slide his index finger from her cheek down to her decolletage. She felt betrayed by her body as she violently jerked her face away from his touch and let out a yelp of fear and frustration. She knew that his act would only fuel his hunger. As his predatory grin spread wider on his face, she knew she was right.

His breathe was acrid and laced with the scent of old scotch her Grandfather used to drink. She felt suffocated by his malodorous scent but she knew that she was to face him straight on. Leah mustered all her strength to pull her face back towards him and look him in the eyes.

"That's my girl, look me in the face with those beautiful big eyes. I've missed you so much."

She would have believed him if she had not already been hardened long ago to those well spun words of insincerity.

" What do you want from me Robert?" Her words were direct and cold.

"I've been hoping to run into you ever since I landed on this island, I'm glad I've had the chance to catch you alone. How convenient for me."

"Leave me alone, we have nothing to talk about." Leah did her best to keep her tones strong and unwavering, but Robert's mocking grin was unyielding, unsettling.

"Oh don't you worry your pretty little head about that, I'll leave you alone, as soon as I'm done with you."

With those chilling words Leah tried to pull away from him, attempting to make one last escape. But his strong hands closed tighter around her forearms and she could feel the bruises instantly forming against the deep pressure in her muscles. Leah screamed out in indignation, loudly yelling for anyone to help. As Robert's hands brusquely clamped against her mouth, her eyes darted over his shoulders in hopes of seeing someone to come rescue her. A certain someone.

The street was deserted and there was no one coming for her.

"Where's your redneck boyfriend Leah, no where to be found? Where is he tonight, not enough of a gentleman to escort you about town? Or maybe he does not want to, he's clearly not waiting around for you to come around that's for certain." Robert snickered again, obviously savouring the power he felt that he obtained from her silence.

" He's more of a gentleman than you can ever dream of being. You're a coward and pig and you don't deserve to be in the vicinity of the likes of him." she spat back, angered by his words.

" Oh-ho! What do we have here? Someone's become a little bit more brazen hasn't she? That's quite bold thing of you say given your situation now."

Robert let out a sinister growl and grabbed Leah by both her shoulders slamming her into the stout brick wall, her head cracked against the hardness and instantly her vision became marred by black abstract splotches and silvers stars.

"Now you listen to me Leah, and you listen to me well. What still makes me smile when I look at you is that no matter how many men you have coming in and out of your bed, no matter what kind of feelings you have for them. I will always be the one who was there first. And I hope every time you sleep with that piece of trash flyboy you still feel me." He punctuated his last word by forcing a rough, wet kiss onto her partially open lips.

Leah struggled for a moment against the invasion, pushing and clawing at his body that felt like it was crushing her by the second.

She could feel herself being overpowered, loosing her strength and motivation to fight against him. However, in the back of her mind her subconscious was still fighting, still knew that she has the strength to win.

She tried to say something but the force of his lips against her's muffled her sentence. Desperate to get away form his iron embrace Leah bit down hard on Robert's lower lip, hard enough that she could taste his bitter blood on her tongue. Robert reeled from the force of her outburst and instantly let go of her to clamp his hands around his mouth.

Leah did not waste a moment to utilize his moment of weakness for her escape. She quickly took one step back and swung her foot directly into his most sensitive area that rested between his inner thighs.

He screamed out, falling to his knees and clutching his injured manhood. Leah took more steps away from him, shocked at the power of her own actions but none the less thankful that she had the strength to do it.

Leah took one deep breathe in and shouted back at him all the frustration, fear, loathing and sadness that she had pent up over the passing months.

"You will never touch me again. And you certainly will never come between me and my happiness. I am too strong for that to happen so you obviously didn't _brand_ me as well as you thought you did."

Leah stood there for a moment looking at the pathetic, crumbled shape of Robert and he whimpered on the ground looking at her with big,bulging and angered eyes.

He opened his gnarled mouth to say something that was obviously meant to cut her deep. However, Leah was too tired and too rilled up to hear any of his nonsense.

" We are done talking here Robert. You deserve all the bad things that happen to you. Goodbye."

And she swiftly turned on her heel without pausing to hear his reaction and walked as quickly as she could without running around the corner and out of sight from where Robert lay.

As her adrenaline left her she began to feel less elated at her victory and grew more aware of her surroundings. Looking around the dark street, absent of any people she grew more paranoid, alone and scared. Not pausing any longer to calm her rattled nerves for quell her shaking hands, Leah picked up her pace to a run and sprinted in the closest direction of her home. She did not stop nor look back until she was safely inside her locked front and bedroom doors. It was only when she sat herself on her bed that her heaving breathes turned into chocked sobs in which she laid her self down and clutched her arms in warmth and protection waiting for sleep to claim her thoughts.

* * *

Danny knowing that Leah was an independent woman who didn't need a man running after her every time she went somewhere by herself had taken to heart what his friends had told him to do and got deliciously drunk in a short amount of time.

It must have been the amount of physical activity he had been doing or the fact each drink seemed to relieve the amount of emotional stress that was pressing down on him daily that the alcohol seemed to effect him so.

It was when the band was in between songs and he found himself deliriously two stepping off to the side of the dance floor while mumbling the lyrics to the last song that was played that he realized that he was missing something.

It was like a miniature panic attack that sent his heart sweeping into the pit of his stomach and the feeling woke him out of his stupor like gunshots. He furiously looked around the bar searching for a familiar face. He saw Anthony and Billy sitting at the bar chatting up two women that seemed to have had far too many drinks, well at least as enough to be talking to them in the first place. He saw Evelyn unsuccessfully trying to fob off a young man repeatedly asking her to dance, and she sat at a table surrounded by unconsumed drinks he had bought for her. Red and Betty were getting a little too cozy in the far corner booth. And the rest of the bar was teeming with activity, at the heigh of the evening, everybody was just beginning to take the night.

But he couldn't see her, she wasn't anywhere. It had been an hour, probably 2 since she had run back to her house to grab something. She had to be here, but she wasn't.

Danny stumbled through the bar searching every table, every group, every corner hoping that she would be sitting there with a drink and a smile. However, every spot was full of drunken strangers telling him to relax. That was the last thing he needed to hear, didn't anyone else care that Leah was missing?

He wandered over to Billy and Anthony, their cries of indignation did nothing to stop him from elbowing the two girls out of the way in order to get face to face with the two of them.

"Common Danny, you're hustling off our girls here." yelled Anthony, standing up.

"Yeah we spent enough money getting them drinks too to talk to us too!" chimed in Billy.

Shaking his head from the nonsense, he didn't have time for this. "Have you seen Leah?" he called loud above the music and the crowd.

" Nope, haven't seen her. Smart girl though if I was seeing a guy as ugly as you, I'd go running for the hills too." Billy replied laughing and taking a swig of his beer and wrapping his arm around the nearest girl. "You ain't no Lieutenant Billy Thompson, no matter how you try to wear your hat like me."

" Billy! Shut up! Seriously, have you seen Leah?" he begged, anger breaking through his drunkenness.

Noticing the seriousness in his face and voice, he answered back seriously.

"No sorry man, I really haven't seen her. I thought she was supposed to be back by now?" Billy replied perking up with understanding.

Billy's statement seemed to reaffirm what Danny's sodden brain seemed to need, that he wasn't worrying over nothing.

All three men stood up together only to be reassured by Danny that they should stay where they were.

"I would hate to think that all that money went down the drain over a little thing that's probably nothing." Danny replied clapping Anthony on the shoulder and giving Billy a strong nod. "I bet she just went home to take nap or something. We've been going out a lot and she's been really busy with work. I bet she just decided to stay home." Danny tried to explain all the probabilities of why she did not make it back to the bar, he tried to avoid the ones where the ending was not so pretty.

"Yeah Danny, I bet that's what happened too. Tell her we missed her tonight when you find her." stated Anthony a little too assuredly.

Danny gave them both one big nod and swiftly turned towards the door of the bar.

Just as his long legs reached the cool breeze of the outside world he felt a strong hand on his arm stopping him and pulling him around.

Evelyn faced him with a look of worry.

"Danny, you haven't seen Leah have you? I've been looking all night but I kept on getting distracted by this man who wouldn't leave me alone!"

" No, I haven't, no one has either. I'm just about to leave to go find where she went. Christ, I am such an idiot!" Danny yelled out running his hands back and fourth through his hair further messing up his untidy locks.

"Danny! Calm down, listen to me. It's not your fault, she's fine, what serious thing could have happened to her. I'm sure she just laid down for a moment and fell asleep." Evelyn replied patting him on the forearm and trying her best to give him a reassuring smile.

"Ev, I made Rafe one promise, to keep you guys safe. I gave him my word. And here I am drinking away while Leah's God know's where. My word's pretty much shot to hell now ain't it?" he searched her eye's wide for some sort of retribution.

"Danny you're fine, everything's fine. All you have to do is go to our house and you'll see Leah all snug in her bed. You don't owe anything to Rafe tonight, because nothing has happened to Leah you hear?" she said as she forced his face to hers to make sure that he got the message. "Now you take this key and just go and see how she is okay? We will all be back soon."

"Okay, I'll do that." Danny replied bluntly taking the key, turning immediately out of the door way and not looking back.

* * *

He walked for about 5 minutes before the sounds of the ocean and the bar drifted into oblivion, and all he could hear were the sounds of the late night city life.

It was not a long walk to the girls house and though he had only been there a couple of time before he knew the route by heart.

He swiftly walked past all the restaurants, bars and clubs that lined the main street and aimlessly dodged all the people and couples and were falling out these establishments. He tried to numb his mind with other happy thoughts that did not circle around Leah being in trouble. He caught himself a few times looking into dark alleyways or deserted street corners for the sight of her. It gave him an even more sense of overwhelming fear to think of the route she must have taken, because there were so many she could be anywhere on the island by now.

But he forced himself to tap into his fighter pilot concentration. This type of concentration was something that the army had beat into them since their first of day of flight training. Never take your eye off the objective because if you let the little things creep into your brain and let that fear paralyze your senses, you're dead. Plain and simple.

He concentrated on just putting one step in front of the other looking around only sometimes to verify his location. Just get to her house, just get there and she'll be waiting for you, just get to her house. He repeated that over and over again in his head until it had almost lost it's meaning. It was just like the thud of a drum beating him foreword with every stride that he took.

It was when he reached the end of Leah's street that he broke into a run, just wanting to reach the house. The porch light was turned off. This concerned him because whenever someone was home, they always left the porch light on, especially if some of the girls were still out. The sinking feeling in his stomach returned as he never really thought about what he would do if he were to go inside and Leah was not home. He opened his palm to reveal the key in his hand which he had been holding onto so tightly that it left a deep imprint in his hand. There was a dark red line of the key in his hand, and it burned slightly to the touch. As he tried to fumble in the dark to take the small key in his fingers he dropped it. Cursing into the darkness he resorted to banging and yelling on the door. If she was home, there was no way she could not hear him.

As the banging and the yelling floated up towards her bedroom, Leah sat up in bed with a start. Ideas and pictures started whirling around in her mind. How could she have been so stupid, running straight home to where Robert could have easily followed behind her?

The knocking was incessant, mocking her fear. She could hear his voice yelling at her to come down and open the door. How did he know she was home alone? Did he think that she was stupid enough to just let him into her home? No Sir! She showed him once and she damn well wanted to prove to him that she could defy him again.

She expected him to go away, she expected him to give up and go away. But the yelling and the knocking continued. For over 5 minutes she stood in her bedroom unsure what to do, should she leave her bedroom and go downstairs to tell him off or stay put and hope that he leaves on his own?

It was when she could hear the door knob giggling and moving back and fourth trying to force the door open that sealed her decision to stay in her and hunker down. What made him so determined to want to get to her so badly? Why couldn't he just accept the fact that he longer had many meaning or purpose in her life and just go away?

With his resolution to get into her home Leah started to think of all the possibilities of what he would do to her once he did find a way in. Was he even alone? Scaring herself by thinking up the gory details of Robert's return her fear overwhelmed her.

"Leave me alone!" she sobbed out, almost hysterically screaming out like a mad women, "Why won't you just leave me alone?"

As tears streamed down her face, she threw all her weight behind her small dresser and moved it in front of the doorway.

Huffing from the strain of the activity her heavy breathing replaced her tears and she put her reading chair in front of it as well just to make sure.

She was so tired and just wanted to go to sleep. All she wanted to do was lie down and drift off into a dreamless oblivion. However, she was reminded that the pounding in the back of her head that it was unwise to go to sleep with this kind of head trauma or you might drift into an eternal oblivion. Though she was tempted by her fear and pain, she knew that she had to stay awake. It did not help that her headache was intensified by all the crying she had done, as everyone knows that crying in excess gives one a massive headache.

So what Leah did was crawl on top of her bed, laid back and looked at the ceiling, sang her favourite song out loud to try to drown out the voice below, and conjure up images of a perfect future like she had done so many times when she was a girl.

She had been using the concentration techniques that her brother had taught her from his army training, really tapping into a tangible something, a certain goal to fixate her mind.

She was jolted awake by the sound of someone trudging up the stairs. Her heart stopped with fear for a moment as the heavy shoed feet thudding up her stairs and stopped just in front of her door.

Tears sprung to her eyes again, uncontrollable, she had tried to play the tough girl for too long. She just wanted someone to be here and protect her. She called out to Rafe or Danny in her mind hoping God would send someone to saver her.

The man's voice on the other side of the door called out again for her, wanting her to open the door. He tested the door knob again, moving it back and fourth.

"Just leave me alone! Please, just let me be." she shrieked out to the door way, as the panic overwhelmed her and sentenced her to retreat to the other side of the bed farthest away from the door.

The response was muffled as he heard the loud thud of a body slamming against the door. He was trying his hardest to get into her room, clearly nothing was going to stop him as he repeatedly threw his weight into the door trying to get in.

She did not realize until her voice caught in throat that she had been screaming.

It only took a couple seconds for the door to crack and she could see the shadowy figure coming around the door and pushing the dresser and chair out of the way.

Leah was defeated, she accepted her fate whatever it may be and hopelessly curled into a ball on the floor with her head tucked into her knees, muffling her soft sobs.

"Please just let me be." she whispered into herself before she could feel the floor boards creaking around her as the man walked towards her and leaned down in front of her.

"Leah, it's me. I'm here, you're safe."

She couldn't do it, she was trembling in fear and if she looked up and saw the face that belonged to the voice that she knew so well she knew that she would break.

"Leah please, look at me. What's going on? What happened? Please!"

Danny's voice was slow and direct and she could hear the concern dripping out of very word. However, she still could not manage to look up at him, she could not manage to stop her tears.

Her tears came slower and her breathing hindered as she felt herself being swooped up into his strong arms. He held her there squeezing her for a moment and she could feel his cheek resting on her head, slowing his breathe with hers.

After a minute she could feel herself being gently lowered onto the bed, first her head followed by her lower half. Her eyes were still closed as she felt the mattress shift under her accommodating Danny's additional weight as he eased himself down beside her.

" What happened sweet pea? Why won't you tell me?" he urged, flipping her from her back and onto her side so that they were looking at each other face to face. He aimlessly ran his hand up and down the curve of her waist waiting for her to open her eyes and answer him.

Leah was scared to open her eyes and to see who really was here talking beside her, she was too hurt to find out that what if it wasn't Danny lying there beside her. She found out how strong she really was though, when she peered one eye open and then the next and gazed longingly into the eyes of the man she desperately loved.

"Danny! It's really you, Danny. I was so scared, I'm so sorry, I was just so scared. I didn't know what was happening. Please I'm so sorry." she pleaded with him as she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face deep into the confines of his thick muscled chest.

"Leah it's all right I'm here, you're not alone. I'm here." he said as he grabbed reciprocated her embrace and pulled her closer towards him.

"I knew you would come." she simply stated as she looked longingly into his eyes.

" I'll always come for you Leah, no matter where you are. I thought you would have known that by know!" he laughed

She smiled as closed her eyes again, reveling in the feeling of the deep vibrations coming through his chest into hers warming her up from her very soul. She could smell the scent of beer wafting from his body, but the scent was comforting like being home, unlike Robert's whose alcoholic scent made her sick.

"But honestly Leah, what happened? Such a pretty face wouldn't be so torn up if something really bad hadn't happened?"

He questioned her earnestly, and he lifted his finger under her chin and turned her face up to meet his once more.

She took one breathe and spilled everything from what happened that evening. She didn't stop once, and he didn't interrupt. She told him about Robert and him cornering her and the awful things that he had said about her. Danny's face grew dark and these parts but grew in pride at the part where she put Robert in his place. But he grew solemn again when she retold of how she thought he was Robert trying to break back into the house to finish the job.

"Leah my strong, brave, beautiful girl!" he stated rolling up onto his elbows and suspending himself over her. "I didn't mean to scare ya, I just dropped the key in the dark!"

"I know, I'm just so glad you're here. I feel like I haven't seen you in weeks, I've missed you so much."

" I"ll never let anyone hurt you again, I'll stay with you for as long as you like."

They lay there suspended in time looking at each other, and the air between them felt heavy and thick swirling full of tensions and emotions that continually brought them together.

Leah's breathe quickened again with the building pressure within her body that was enveloping her with luxurious sensations.

"Danny?" Leah asked softly

He replied with a brusque grunt that seemed to have been caught in his throat on the way out.

"I want you to stay the night, the whole night, and be with me."

Danny looked at Leah with bright and lustful eyes and was silent as he leaned down and gently kissed her wanting lips.

He pulled away from her suddenly, and for a moment she felt upset that he did not want to continue. She thought there was something wrong as he raised himself on his elbows again and she could feel him shaking slightly against her.

He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. He searched her eyes for a moment before looking into her eyes and opening his mouth.

"Leah I'm in love with you. I've loved you ever since I can remember you every being in my life, and I will love you until my heart stops beating. I will love you forever."

Leah took in a sharp inhalation of breath. She had always known that Danny loved her and that she loved him back but it was hearing it out in the open for the first time that really made it real. It was hearing it for the first time that she truly believed that this was a once in a life time love. And she wanted to be with him forever.

"I love you too Danny. I'll love you with all my heart now and I'll love you still even when you're fat and bald. I don't care just as long as I get to love you while you're sitting here next to me each and every day for the rest of my life. Now come back here and kiss me before I don't shut up about it!"

And he did just that, leaning down and kissing her like it was the first time. They laid there kissing and laughing and having a pretty good idea of what they would do as their first act of being together for the rest of their lives.

* * *

Thank you all so much for reading. Your support gives me the best motivation to write more, so keep those reviews coming!

AR


	16. Holding Out for a Hero

**Hello All! This chapter is going to be a little different setting than the others, but I wanted to dabble into something a little different. Let me know how you like it. Now this chapter is named after a song "Holding Out for a Hero" by Ella Mae Brown. I suggest you listen to it as it is really good and goes along with the theme of this chapter. Happy reading! Enjoy! AR**

Disclaimer: I do not own any of this content expect for my original characters**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 16**

**Holding Out for a Hero**

The heavy lidded eyes of Rafe McCawley had already snapped open before he heard the tin door scratch across the dirt floor of the officers hut. He remained in bed until the final seconds when he heard the voice of his friend Alfie Thomas whispering into his ear, " It's best you get up Lieutenant, there is some flying to do today."

But he'd already known that, it's always the dreams he had before hand that tipped him off what he was in for the when is aching and exhausted body was wrenched from his single bed. It was always her, Evelyn, with her loving smile and warming eyes looking into him like it was the last time. That's what made these images into those of his nightmares and not like the paradise they should have been. Though it was not talked about openly among the men, most had nightmares of their last moment's in their planes. Screaming and helpless in their seats as they thundered towards the earth, with nothing to greet them but the fire and the grabbing green arms of the trees waiting hungrily for their arrival. He knew this is what his fellow squadron mates feared most, their choked gasps and muffled screams would wake him up at least every night by one person or another, sometimes it would be multiple times a night depending on the mission that they had just arrived from.

Rafe knew he was different from the others though, it wasn't the dying part that scared him, or crashing into the earth either. All along he knew what he has signed up for, he was not beguiling himself like all the other eighteen or nineteen year old swaggering into the barracks on their first day acting like they were invincible. What made it worse was that he was still here, mission after missions and that those were the kids that were gone within a week. The bright eyed, smiling, living people one moment to just a trunk filled of pictures of their mothers and baseball cards the next being hauled out and replaced by another one, all before afternoon tea. What separated him from the others was his fear of loosing one of the most important and beautiful things in his life. One of the only reasons why he needed to fight as hard and as long as he could everyday, just in order to get back to her. If he died he would never get to see her ever again, and that is what scared him half to death. It was this one thought and determination that set him apart from the other young men who waltzed in through the doors fresh from training.

"Mattress Testers", a term that loosely be felled all those young men who came and went so quickly.

It was that thought that ran through his head as he turned over in his bunk and opened his eyes to reveal the empty mattress beside him that once contained the life of his friend James, aged 21, dead just the day before by falling 10,000 feet from his burning aircraft, without a parachute. But even more burning in his mind was the conversation that occurred from stumbling across hunched over figure in the washrooms the night before, hysterically heaving and crying over the toilet, the body convulsing into shudders as it expelled it's fears into the porcelain bowl. He was a new kid, probably no older that nineteen, but Rafe could not remember his name, he did not even bother anymore with those. But his pathetic figure hunched over made him look no older than fifteen, he could not just leave him there alone.

The boy looked up at him with big, ghost filled eyes, full of fear and pain and said to him something in a barely audible whisper, in his softly lilted British accent.

Rafe had to ask him to repeat himself, in which he responded through his tear streaked face in a louder more angry filled tone.

"Is it true we're just the mattress testers? That we won't last more than a night here!?" his voice cracked with emotion at the end of the last word.

" Who told you that kid?" Rafe answered patiently, trying to cover up the anger that he felt towards his other squadron members for using that term openly in front of the new pilots.

" I heard some of the other pilots in my hut calling me that the other night, when I was setting up my stuff, they said that I wouldn't be back the next day so why even bother!" the tears continued to roll down his cheeks, and his heaving chest looked like it was going fast enough to make him fly off the cold tiled floors. "What am I even doing here? I'm not ready, I'm not ready for this!"

Rafe took two long strides towards the boy and crouched in front of him looking him right in his watery blue eyes.

"What's your name son, how old are you?" he questioned

" Henry Sir, Henry Evans. I just turned nineteen Sir."

" How far from home are you Evans?"

" Never been this far from me home ever Sir, it's all the way on the other side of the country, down south." replied Henry starting to calm his tears and breathing with every word.

"Ah I see, a good Southern boy eh? Like me." replied Rafe cracking a lopsided smile while clapping Henry on the shoulder.

"No Sir, not quite like you." Henry said looking up into Rafe's eyes like a lost puppy, but Rafe could see a glimmer of a smile in his eyes and tugging at the corner of his mouth. "I'm from Devon, not _Tennessee_", emphasizing the last word with his best impression of a Southern accent, all but butchering the name.

Rafe laughed at the attempt warming up to the pluckiness that he could sense in the boy, a fire that he too had in himself. But in his youth and inexperience this boy needed someone to show him through and teach him the ropes, to show him how to best survive in this hell hole.

" How many hours you got clocked Evans?" Rafe questioned reaching to grab Henry's hand and pulled him up off he ground to stand on his two feet.

Rafe looked him up and down in disbelieve, Henry towered over him and being a tall man himself let out another chuckle.

"Jesus boy, they grow beanpole giants down in Devon, I bet you're playing a lot of basketball down on them farms of yours."

"Basketball Sir? I don't think we play that here." Henry responded bluntly, sounding a little bit confused.

"You don't know what basketball is? Hell, I'll have to teach you a little bit, you'll be in the big leagues in no time!"

"Well, I'd like that Lieutenant, to go back home after all this and be some kind of big time star... If I ever make it back there." Henry lamented again, his voice going soft.

" Now you listen up Evans and you listen good, none that kind of talk will ever help you get back home in one piece. That kinda fear ain't gunna help you out in the skies. You need to trust yourself, your instincts and truly believe that what you are doing in that plane is exactly where you are meant to be and that your mission is the most important thing in the world in that moment. Only then will you be able to become the pilot that I know you can be and the type of pilot that your country needs you to be. You understand me? Can you do that?" Rafe paused for a moment to let his words seep into Henry Evans soul and try to shock him into the mindset fighter pilots need to have.

After a moment he broke the silence, "Like I said how many hours you got clocked?"

" 45." was Henry's blunt response.

" 45? Well now that's pretty good, you've got a solid base going." Rafe tried to lie through his teeth, he knew well enough that only 45 hours in a plane was not going to get him far. With those kind of hours he probably only had an enough experience to get the plane airborne, fly it around a little and manage to land it back again. He did not yet have the experience and knowledge to engage in a dogfight against some of the most well trained and dangerous pilots that the Luftwaffe were going to throw at him.

"Really? That's good?" Henry looked at him hopefully, like a child at Christmas.

" Yeah! You think that the army would send you into combat not ready?" Another lie. "I can smell the Ace coming off of ya."

They began to walk out of the washroom together, Rafe hoping that we had given him the right words to set him into his first combat mission.

They parted ways as they both headed off into the different directions of their quarters. Both men gave each other a curt nod as they walked off into the brisk September air.

Rafe had taken a few steps before he heard his named be called out and he swiveled around to meet the voice.

"Lieutenant McCawley!" Henry called out after him, "Thank you Sir."

"Any time Evans, you just remember what I told you tonight alright? I'll see you up in the blue." Rafe replied as he saluted Henry and walked back off into azure sky off the setting sun and hopefully to a good night's sleep.

* * *

As per usual Rafe was the first person to enter the dining hall on the foggy morning of the day they were to escort a bombing mission deep into the heart of Germany. He was exhausted, his arms and back ached from sitting in the cramped cockpit for hours on end. It had been a long, arduous week in which they had been flying missions almost every day, escorting bombers deeper and deeper into enemy territory. They hadn't seen a milk run into France for almost two weeks, and the casualties as a result had been severe. Bomber command had them flying these missions frequently as word was getting out that Germany was planning a secret offensive attack in the coming months and it was imperative to immobilize and destroy as many factories and transport outposts to stall their progress. But still, it came at a deadly cost as survival rate of some of their missions was as low as 16% which began to breed a sense of resentment disheartenment among the men. Was this all worth it?

He walked up to the serving line and greeted the old man behind the counter with a curt nod.

"The usual then Lieutenant McCawley?" he responded with a gruff voice but with a kind smile.

"Yes please, thank you Eddie."

"Good luck today sir, all the best." the man said as he handed over a plate filled with a heaping serving of real eggs, bacon and pancakes. Combat food. "I've put an extra lump in there today" he added cheekily giving Rafe a wink and handing over a large mug of steaming black coffee.

Rafe swallowed hard and reached up and grabbed the mug trying his best to keep his smile unwavering. It was like everyone was treating him like it was his last breakfast. Superstition around the barracks had worked out that the number of missions a pilot would average was eighteen. Today was Rafe's twenty-first mission, 3 above the average, which meant that this chances of not making it through the day were staggeringly high, more than the average flyer. He tried to keep those figures out of his mind every time he was stirred awake for a mission, but every morning it began to get harder and harder to rouse himself for the day ahead, knowing all to well that it could be his last. It certainly did not help that the other's around him were treating him much more carefully and nicer, always asking him how he was and doing things like giving him an extra lump of sugar in his coffee every morning. He resented the treatment, not liking how people were separating him from the normal routines of all the other pilots around him. He even noticed that the little amount of friends that he had around him were distancing themselves and not inviting him out for beers as often as usual, like they were preparing for him to die. Still he tried not to think about and just do his job like he had been doing for months now, it had go him this far hadn't it?

He had been sitting quietly eating his breakfast and going over the mission plan and flight controls repeatedly, memorizing them and practicing mentally for the task ahead of him. That's why he liked to come and eat breakfast while no one else was around, the quietness helped him to think and he needed this alone time to compose himself before the deafening tones of hundreds of pilots eating their breakfast clouded his mind and weakened his resolve.

The room started slowly filling up around him and the increasing amount of unfamiliar faces was a testament to their past two weeks efforts.

As he looked around he did see one familiar face, bounding towards him with his goofy grin plastered on a face which stood inches above all the other flyers in the room. Henry walked over to Rafe's table and slide onto the bench with a groan. His tray two plates stacked high with the delicious food.

"Morning Sir! Beautiful morning ain't it?" immediately tucking into the copious amounts of food in front of him.

"Certainly is there Evans. How are them knees treating you today?" replied Rafe

"Oh you know same old, won't stop me from getting a few kills today though!" Henry brightly responded.

Given his height Henry had to squeeze awkwardly into the planes cockpit causing his knees to rub against the top of the planes heavy metal interior which caused great welts to cover his knees, which was extremely painful especially when they were coupled with the cramps he faced in his legs for the same reasons.

However, the frightened and scared teenager that Rafe had met crying in the washroom has no longer. Henry had proved to be an excellent pilot with natural skills in the air. He was confident and smart, proving himself in the air day after day. Rafe always felt safer when they flew together because he knew he would always have someone to watch out for his six. Plus he just plain liked the kid, his sunny disposition was as bright as the hair on his head and they could not help but be fast friends. His fellow officers made fun of him, but he didn't care for their stuffy British airs they put on, he much preferred the company of Henry who was more simple and down to earth. But what he liked most is that he didn't treat him like he was on death doors every time they spoke.

They finished their breakfast talking candidly about their lives and what their plans were for their two day leave they had this weekend.

Henry was in the middle of discussing how excited he was to finally go home and ask the local shop girl, Iris out on a proper date when they were interrupted by a long, piercing whistle blast.

Breakfast was over, it was time to head to their planes and get up in that sky.

* * *

Rafe pulled up onto the airbase in the big trucks that shuffled the pilots back and fourth. As he jumped out of the back of the truck he could see the ground crew putting the last of the gasoline and ammunition into his plane.

He was disappointed when he saw that the bullet holes that his plane sustained two days ago had not been patched up, making the shell of this aircraft much less stable and not leaving much breathing room for it to sustain much more battle damage.

"I'm sorry Sir, we've been swamped down here, not much time to patch the little things up!" the sergeant looking after his plane supplied, when he noticed Rafe running his hands along that bullet holes in the side of his plane.

"That's alright, as long as the tank's filled up nice and full. We need to give those bombers the best chances up there today. I wanna be able to be up there for as long as I can."

"Righto Sir. I've done my best."

"Thank you, I could also use a little bit more ammo today, I've been running real low these past couple missions." Rafe added solemnly.

"I can spare only ten additional rounds today. Coventry got hit pretty bad the other day I hear, not much ammo is coming out this week."

Rafe looked blankly at the member of the ground crew trying not to get angry because he knew it wasn't his fault. The hard work of the ground crew were the reason why he was even able to fly at all. All the pilots respected them deeply.

"Well, enough of that, let's just get these wheels rolling." asserted Rafe, climbing up the ladder and hopping into the seat of his plane.

Rafe did all of this takeoff checks, everything in his plane looked like it was good to go. He felt at home and confident in today's mission. This was where he was meant to be. He finally clicked on his radio communication and broadcasted to his fellow squadron members before there was to be a strict radio silence until the rallying point.

"Alright Red 1, this is Red Leader checking in. Is everyone good to go?" he announced into the microphone situated at this neck.

The rest of his squad echoed in their affirmatives, their voices muffled over the sound of dozens of propellors erupting into life all over the airfield.

"Right then lads good luck, God speed and let's get this done." declared Rafe with the same words that he spoke to his men before every mission.

They had been flying for two hours before they reached they rallying point somewhere just off the coast of France before they were to take a sharp left turn into Germany where they were to meet up with the bomber fleet that had left a couple of hours ahead of them.

Everything had been going smoothly, despite the fact that two of the Mustangs in his squadron had to turn back due to technical failures shortly after takeoff. They were going to be a little short which meant the remaining planes would have to be extra sharp. However, he trusted the men with him today so he was not that concerned.

"Alright team, this is it. Is everyone all set to go, I was just radioed from the bomb squad that were needed pretty bad up there." Rafe called out to the rest of the planes.

"Let get these sons' of bitches." replied a plucky new pilot named Lewis, who was flying directly to Rafe's left.

Rafe chuckled to himself as the rest of the squad murmured their agreement, glad to know that they were in high spirits. One voice was absent from this though, and Rafe was concerned to why Henry had not checked in yet.

"Evans, you're a little quite out there. What's going on?" Rafe curtly asked

It took a while for Henry to respond, which was quite strange. Rafe peeked over his right shoulder, where Henry's plane was situated and noticed the pilot staring directly at his dashboard.

"Evans! What's going on over there buddy?" he practically yelled over the intercom

Finally, Henry's voice feebly cracked over the radio breaking the silence. "Rafe, I've got a little problem over here." To which Rafe looked over again and met eyes with Henry through the thick glass of their cockpits.

"Spit it out Evans, what's going on!"

"I should have noticed this sooner, I don't know why I didn't, it must have just happened!" stated Henry in a little panicked voice.

"What happened?" Rafe replied getting frustrated at Henry's lack of communication.

"A leak. In my main tank, the patch must not have stuck that well from when it was nicked a couple days ago."

"How bad is it? How much fuel do you have left Henry?" Rafe responded trying to keep his voice level.

"A quarter of a tank." was Henry's blunt response.

A wave of sadness swept over Rafe, this was bad news, at this point Henry needed at least half a tank to make it back to England, he assumed that Henry probably only had an hour, two at best left of flight time before his engine gave out. He was trapped with only two options, none of which left him with a very good chance of survival. One being turn back now and pray to make it back but running the massive risk of having to bail out over the ocean. The second being that he remained with the squad until he ran out of gas and either crash landed or bailed out over enemy territory. Neither option seemed to be feasible or fair way for his friend who was just getting started, finding his own way. It wasn't right. Rafe was angry knowing that the two planes which dropped out of formation were situated behind Henry's plane, and if they were still there they would have seen the gas hemorrhaging out of his plane in time enough for him to turn back safely towards England.

"Well now Henry you know your options as good as any of us. The choice is completely up to you. What are you gonna choose?" a dejected Rafe sighed into the radio

With surprising strength in his voice Henry responded, "I'm gonna stay with you all and fight. You can't afford to loose another one."

Rafe felt a swell of pride at the young man's choice, knowing that he just made the decision to sacrifice his life for the other's around him, both in the fighters and the bombers. A decision to which they would all owe him greatly, he was a hero.

"Okay Evans, let's do this. You just let me know when it's your time to go." replied Rafe, letting his emotions creep into his words for a moment when he felt his voice crack on the last word.

Rafe looked over to his right again and met eyes with Henry, they both gave each other a curt nod and Henry gave Rafe a big thumbs up and a feeble smile.

They flew in silence for the next 30 minutes before they came into contact with the long, white jet streams of the bombers ahead of them, and it was another 10 minutes of flying before they caught up to the last planes of the bomber formation. Rafe could see the swarm of the Luftwaffe's planes swirling around the first few planes, trying to take out the leaders.

Rafe's radio cracked to life with the sound of a British voice, "Thank you Little Friends, just in time to join the party." It was the voice of the lead plane's captain who was clearly thankful for their arrival.

Rafe surveyed the skies like a hawk searching for it's prey. It only took him a moment to zero in on a plane taking a deep dive out of the sun to fire upon the lead plane.

He took a deep breath and punched his plane foreword at full speed in order to intercept it's assault.

Rafe took a sharp turn into the path of the German's Messerschmitt, cutting off it's path. He could hear the explosion of bullets as his enemy fired at him but thankful he was able to pull out of his path and up into the sky. The German fighter took his bait and followed his path away from the bombers. Now it was time to really get flying. Constantly trying turning his head left and right trying to spot the enemy's position behind him, all Rafe needed was for the fighter to make one small mistake in order to get the better shooting advantage.

Rafe's plane danced amongst the clouds turning and spiraling around the line of bullet's that were spitting at him, trying to knock him out of the sky. He could not help but crack a smile at this knowing that his skills were good enough to get him out of this situation, that the poor bastard in the plane behind him had no chance.

It was then that the German plane behind him made that mistake that Rafe has desperately been hoping for. In a bold attempt to overtake his Mustang the German had stalled his engine, giving Rafe a few precious seconds of advantage over him, which he took willingly.

Pressing down on his trigger, Rafe sent out a spray of bullet's directly into the waiting engine of the Messerschmitt. It only took a few seconds for the engine to burst into flames and for the whole front of the plane to be consumed in them. The pilot inside had no chance of bailing out, which Rafe felt remorseful about. He couldn't help but feel bad every time he shot down a plane in which the pilot did not have a fair chance of survival. He turned his plane out of the way immediately not wanting to look upon the scene that would inevitably happen next. The loud explosion shook up his plane and rattled the controls of under his finger tips. The plane he had just shot had exploded, killing the pilot inside, and raising his count to 12 downed planes. 12 dead pilots. He shook his head, this was not the time to think about such things.

Looking back into the field of bombers still chugging towards their bomb run, Rafe tried to scout out the locations of his fellow squadron members and the locations of the other German fighters. He noted that there were two dog fights occurring far up into the clouds. But miraculously the other German fighters began to lift off of the formation and begin to regroup. This was the sign that they were about to leave. Thank goodness, for the Messerschmitts and their low gas capacity.

He heard another explosion in the sky and saw the orange cloud of fire and debris high above him. He prayed that it was the enemy and not one of his friends.

He let out a huge sigh of relief as he saw a Mustang sail out of the sky and to tuck in close beside his wing. He looked over and saw the goofy smile and kind eyes of his good friend. Henry had just achieved his sixth and final kill. Not a bad average for someone who had only flew as many missions.

Rafe's radio came alive once more with the voice of his friend.

"Okay Rafe, I've done my job here. This is the end of the road for me."

"You sure have Evans. You've made a lot of people proud up here. Especially me." responded Rafe in a tone tinged with sadness.

"Will you write to my Mother? Tell her that I'm going to be okay, that I did good, and that I'll find a way to make it. And to Iris? That I'll be home soon enough to take her on that date?" Henry laughed despite the situation.

"Yeah I'll sure do that kid. But you've got to focus now, you don't have a lot of time so listen up. Were right near Strasbourg. When you land you gotta hide right away, bury your 'chute and walk. Don't draw any attention to yourself. Find food and shelter. There are gonna be some Frenchies that will be willing help you, but some who are not gonna be your friend. Be wary of who you ask for help. Find a way to Switzerland there are Allied Embassies there that will get you sorted out. You got that?" Rafe said hurriedly.

"Yes Sir."

"You got your chute on good and tight? You're gonna have to jump, crash landing is a beacon for German patrols that's not an option now. You got your pistol? Your emergency kit?" he sounded like a Mother sending their kid off to school on the first day of class, but he didn't care he wanted to make sure that Henry had the best chance he could to survive and make it home.

"Yes Sir, Rafe I'm good to go." replied Henry. Rafe could hear the panic starting to rise up in his words.

Through the intercom Rafe could hear the sputter of an engine and immediately looked over to Henry's plane, he could see the propellors motion starting to fade. "Oh no Rafe, this is it, I'm out of fuel!" Henry's voice rose up to a high pitch.

"It's gonna be alright Henry but you gotta go, you gotta bail right now before it's too late. Good Luck, you better send me a letter when you get back to England!"

He looked over to make sure that Henry got out alright, he wanted to guide him through this for as long as he could. He only had thirty seconds to get out before his plane before it dove into a steep drop, spinning out of control before the centrifugal force pinned him inside, rendering it impossible for him to bail out.

He thought he was in the clear once he saw the glass of Henry's plane pop off, but knew there was something wrong once he did not see Henry tumble out of the plane afterwards. He waited with hushed breath.

"Rafe! Im stuck, oh God, I'm stuck I can't get out. My legs are trapped!" came a voice overpowered by wind, he could hear the tears in his voice.

Rafe's stomach fell, Henry only had a few moment's to free himself or he was doomed. He couldn't helped but panically yelling back to him.

"You gotta try real hard Henry, you gotta pull as hard as you can. You don't have any time!" He could see Henry's face scrunched up in the exertion of trying to free his trapped body. "Common Henry, this is not how you go, this is not how you die." Rafe said quietly to himself, praying to his friend to make it through this.

He heard Henry let out a scream of final desperation and Rafe finally saw he body fall out of the cockpit hurdling to the ground below at astonishing speed. He counted aloud the ten seconds the pilots were told to wait until they pulled their parachute, hoping to God that Henry would remember this. Those ten seconds felt like years as the body of his friend turned into the black spec tumbling towards the earth.

Rafe led out a loud yell of triumph as he saw the glorious sight of a large plume of white billowing out into the blue sky. Henry's parachute had deployed and now his entire fate relied on his ability to think fast, be smart and hopefully a lot of luck and the kindness of strangers.

He had heard success stories of guys making it back alive, fighting alone through enemy territory without being caught. But the best chance Henry had was being caught by regular German soldiers and taken to a good POW camp to wait out the rest of the war. Rafe knew if someone could make it back it was Henry. He had faith in that gangly boy from Devon, he had to have hope.

Without him realizing it Rafe had been crying, there was stream of tears coming down his face. It was the first time that he had cried in years. But there was still work to be done, they were not out of the dark yet. He reached up to his face and quickly brushed the tears off his cheeks.

"Okay boys, we gotta get our heads straight. Evans will be fine, we gotta all send him out best. Let's get this together and make it back home. All of us. Were all gonna make it home."

Rafe looked down at his picture on his dash of the three people that made his life whole, who made all of this fighting worth it. Leah, Danny and Evelyn all looked back at him with bright smiles and shining eyes, like they were telling him how proud they were of him, and how soon he was going to be back. He was going to get back home to them.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set over the green Hawaiian hills surrounding the home that the girls lived in. Leah was sitting in the garden bench which overlooked the ocean writing a letter to Rafe. She felt bad that she had missed writing to him last week so she resolved to write him double this week, so she could enlighten him on all of the things that had been going on in her life. That is all the things minus her love life, Leah didn't think that Rafe was quite ready to hear that she and Danny were together. That type of news was just going to have to wait until he came home.

All the girls were staying in tonight. It had been an exceptionally long two days, as the clinic had been more busy than usual. Tonight they were just going to have a girls night in, doing their nails, gossiping and listening to music. They wanted to do the things that they hadn't had time to do for a while, since things got busy at work and since they all had managed to spend more time with their new male counterparts. Leah had been looking foreword to this night all week.

Just as she was finishing up her letter to Rafe, Sandra poked her head out of the back door to call her inside.

"You better hurry up and get in here Leah, before Betty uses up all of that new nail polish you just bought today!"

"Geez! Give me a moment, I'm coming. Tell Betty if she uses my nail polish before I even have a chance to open it I'll kill her!" hollered back Leah with a laugh. Despite all the little annoying things that her housemates did, she loved them to death and couldn't imagine this new and exciting phase of her life without them.

Leah finally finished her letter and licked the envelope closed, grimacing at the awful taste of the glue that she had never gotten used to.

She stood up and walked across the grass of their backyard, humming quietly to herself. But as she got halfway to the house she saw a big black, shiny car roll to a stop in front of her house. She was confused as no one was supposed to be expecting visitors tonight, as it was girls night after all.

She walked hesitantly towards the car as the door swung open and a heavy booted shoe hit the pavement with a thud.

She was shocked yet excited to see Danny ease the rest of his body out of the car.

Leah rushed foreword to greet him. She was not supposed to see him tonight, but she couldn't help but show her delight in him being here.

"What are you doing here silly? I told you that tonight was girls night!" she teased him leaning in for a kiss.

She was taken a back when he leaned away, rebuffing her advance. In her excitement to see him Leah did not realize that his eyes were rimmed with redness and that his skin was ghostly white.

"Danny, what's wrong? Is everything okay?" she stammered nervously, instinctively taking a step away from him.

He shook his head lightly and looked over his shoulder to the other person emerging from the car - a Pastor.

Leah's heart flew out of her chest as she instantly began to take hurried heaving breaths.

"You tell me right now what's going on Danny." her voice cracked and she could feel the tears springing to her eyes.

Danny looked down into her eyes as he stated quietly yet firmly, "It's Rafe. He's dead."

* * *

**Hope you all liked the new chapter, as always reviews are always very appreciated. You don't know how much your kind words mean to me so thank you all very much for those of you that take the time to review my chapters. Much love AR**


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